Wendy's eyes widened.
"What did you just say?"
‘Did I hear him right?’ she wondered.
They had known each other for quite some time already.Ryan had pursued her and even asked her
several times to be his girlfriend.Wendy had also developed feelings for him.But they had never said
the word "love" to each other.
This was the first time Wendy had heard Ryan say this and she was utterly shocked.
Ryan had always been a man of a few words.She never thought of him as the type to verbally express
his love.Wendy couldn't help turning back around. The two locked gazes with each other.
"Did you just..."
"Yes, Wendy.I love you."
Still dazed, Wendy stuttered, "You said...that you..."
Ryan placed his hand on her belly again.Though his palm was warm, his touch sent shivers down her
spine.
Gently, he stroked the area where the scar was.
Wendy twitched and wanted to move away.
"Don't move, please."
"But you..."
Ryan closed his eyes and sighed, his breath blowing coldly on Wendy's face.
"Your scar...I think it’s sacred." Wendy's eyebrows knitted in confusion.
“Hear me out.It's a reminder of how your body nurtured two little babies.They were like seeds that grew
bigger and bigger until finally, you delivered them into the world.It's the wonder of life!" Ryan thought
about Raymond and Precious and wished they could have grown up together earlier.
If he and Wendy had found each other sooner, they could have fallen in love with each other and
gotten together then.He would have been able to witness her pregnancy and the early stages of his
babies like a normal husband and father.He could have seen the babies’ first milestones in person.
They could have been nervous and excited to be first-time parents together.But as fate would have it,
life turned out differently.
He missed out on a lot of things.
"Wendy, thank you."
"For what?"
Wendy blinked, unable to tell why he was thanking her.
"For giving birth to Ray and Precious," he said seriously.
Wendy was slightly taken aback.She then coughed awkwardly.
"Ryan, since we're on this topic, I need to tell you something.If I had known then that the babies weren't
Brian's, I would have had an abortion."
Upon hearing that, Ryan's face darkened.His hand on her belly froze as well.
"Well, you see...I had just woken up from a coma that time and found out that I had given birth to Ray.I
honestly considered dropping him off at an orphanage," she added.
Ryan looked at her, a hint of disbelief flashing through his eyes.
Wendy patted his shoulder.
"I know the truth isn't always pleasant to hear, butI thought you needed to know."
The corner of Ryan's mouth twitched.
"Say something, please." Ryan still didn't say anything.
What did she want him to say? He thought he was the cold and unromantic one, but it turned out that
this woman knew how to dispel a romantic moment faster than he could.Ryan got up, a sullen
expression on his face.He lifted the quilt on Wendy's legs and rolled up her pajama pants higher.He
took the iodine bottle, dipped a cotton swab in it, and began to disinfect her knees.
Wendy sat up and bit her lip.
"Are you mad at me?"
"No” he said matter-of-factly.
But his face said otherwise.
"Look, it didn't happen anyway, okay? I didn't have an abortion.And I kept Ray."
A sharp, icy pain shot up from her knee as the cotton swab touched her wound.
She exclaimed, "Are you doing this on purpose to get back at me, Ryan?"
Actually, he was trying to be gentle as much as possible.
"Just hold on."
"Ouch, that really hurts! Are you trying to hurt me, Ryan?"
"No, be quiet!"
"Ouch! Please, just give it to me.I'll do it myself."
Ryan's forehead began to break out in a sweat.He had never treated someone else's wound before,
and he didn't want to hurt her.His hands shook from being too nervous.
Every time she hissed in pain, he held his hand back, afraid that he would be too clumsy.By the time
Ryan finished treating her knees, he was sweating all over his body.
As for Wendy, her body was filled with all sorts of pain from her dysmenorrhea and now her knees.Her
energy was just about completely drained.
"You can go ahead and sleep.I'll just take a shower" he said.
Weakly, Wendy nodded and leaned back down on her bed.
Five minutes later, Ryan came out of the shower.He checked his watch for the time.
It was a few minutes to one o'clock in the morning.He looked over at Wendy who was curled up in the
bed, tossing and turning from time to time and groaning in pain.
"Can't fall asleep?"
"No."
She was frustrated.Her stomach was beginning to cramp again.
"Ryan...Do you think you can go down and buy painkillers for me?"
"Absolutely not."
Ryan had read online that taking a lot of painkillers could be dangerous.
"I can get you some hot water if you want." Wendy shook her head and refused.
He pushed the couch over to her side of the bed and sat down.
"Okay, well, how about we talk?"
"Okay..."
Talking could possibly distract her from the pain.Ryan leaned back and thought of a topic to talk
about.He was not exactly the best person to talk to.His friends actually described him as a mood killer
sometimes.He ran through several topics in his mind, but none good enough.
Family? Wendy's mother passed away many years ago.Her father didn't treat her well.Her sister wasn't
in a good place.
This topic would only make her sad.
Friends? Other than Bruce and Luke, he had never really seen her hang out with anyone else.
Romance? Well, that would make him sad.
Suddenly, Ryan got an idea.
Last time, Wendy had gotten drunk and gave him an !0U.She had mentioned an ex before and said
that he was the most handsome man in the world.
Ryan smiled and began to speak.
"You said a while ago that you would have gotten an abortion if you knew that Brian wasn't the father,
right?" Wendy nodded.
Back then, Brian had tricked her into thinking that she had sex with him.She would have been
devastated if she found out the truth, but she would not have hesitated to take the morning-after pills.
She was still young and naive then, but she knew better than to give birth to a stranger's children.
"You loved Brian very much, didn't you?" Ryan asked.
"Well, we were together for three years. What do you expect?"
To be fair, he was asking for trouble by bringing this up.But he had already started the conversation.It
was too late to turn back.
"If I may ask, what exactly did you love about him?"
Judging by his tone, he looked down upon Brian.
"Come on, that's your nephew you're talking about." Wendy chuckled.
Ryan rolled his eyes.His disdain for Brian was quite obvious.
"You see? You have bad judgment when it comes to people."
"What?"
Wendy opened her mouth in shock.
"That's insulting! Excuse you, I do have good judgment.Maybe Brian was a fluke.But after him came
Jeffrey, and then..." She paused.
"And then who?"
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