AMMSCF Chapter 34

At the very start of June, the temperature in A City suddenly shot up.

Duan Baisui came back early from his business trip. He had half a day off in the afternoon. Instead of returning to the company, he had the driver take him to the New Era Plaza.

It had been five days since he last saw Zuo Nian. Although the two often video-called, it still wasn’t as intimate as being together in person.

When he pushed the door open, the cool blast of air conditioning hit him all at once. A little rabbit-shaped sensor by the wall gave a crisp “Welcome” greeting. The volume wasn’t low at all, yet the young man resting at the counter didn’t wake up.

Duan Baisui turned around and locked the shop door behind him, then slowed his steps as he walked closer. Zuo Nian had his face resting on a soft cartoon pillow, a thin jacket draped over his back. His breathing was steady, with not a trace of vigilance in sight. No wonder he always lost things. Sleeping like a little pig like this, even if someone cleared out the whole store, he might not even notice.

Duan Baisui bent down and kissed his exposed cheek.

Zuo Nian only scratched his face and turned his head to the other side.

All right, all right, if today it had been a stranger Alpha, he would’ve been at a serious loss.

Duan Baisui sat down beside him, slipping his hand under the hem of Zuo Nian’s shirt, gently stroking him with mischief. Only when he added a bit of pressure did the sleeping youth finally wake from the pain.

He sat up straight, looking over with alertness. But when he saw Duan Baisui’s face, the drowsiness in his eyes cleared at last, and the movement he was about to make in retaliation froze midair. He called out, “Gege!”

“How are you sleeping so deeply?” Duan Baisui asked.

Zuo Nian pouted, “You’re not here. Nian Nian can’t sleep well at night without you. So during the day, I get super, super sleepy.”

“You didn’t even react when I kissed you. I touched you for so long before you woke up. What if it had been someone else?” Duan Baisui asked seriously.

Zuo Nian didn’t push away the hand that was causing mischief. Instead, he leaned in even more affectionately, offering himself up closer as he said, “No way. Other people… don’t smell as good as Gege. It’s because Gege smells too good… that Nian Nian didn’t wake up in time.”

“You’re acting spoiled again,” Duan Baisui chuckled lowly. “Did you miss me?”

Zuo Nian’s ears turned red, and he nodded.

Duan Baisui took the opportunity to hold him close, kissing the spot that had already been tended to for quite some time.

Zuo Nian hunched his body, flustered and shy. “Someone might come in…”

Duan Baisui didn’t tell him that the door had already been locked. Instead, he deliberately teased, “You weren’t scared of someone coming in when you were sleeping alone just now. But now you’re scared?”

“Gege… Gege,” Zuo Nian was truly frightened, “I don’t want… don’t want others to see…”

After just a few days apart, his darling seemed to have gained a little weight. His whole body was soft and tender, which Duan Baisui adored to no end. He suddenly felt a craving like an oral fixation, biting down and refusing to let go. “No one else will see. Only I get to look.”

Zuo Nian whimpered softly. While overwhelmed by a flood of pleasure, he also kept glancing nervously toward the front door. In the clash of these two extreme emotions, his reactions became even more intense.

They had only ever done this kind of thing at home before. Now, in a place where strangers could show up at any moment, Zuo Nian was nearly scared out of his wits. But even so, he couldn’t bring himself to reject Duan Baisui’s closeness.

Both his body and his heart missed him so, so much.

Zuo Nian tilted his neck back, panting. The man’s warm breath brushed against his throat again, and after licking and kissing over his gland, he finally stopped.

Duan Baisui pulled his clothes back down and reached out to wipe the tear tracks at the corners of his eyes. “Why are you crying? Got scared? I locked the door. Don’t be afraid. Do you really think I’d be generous enough to let anyone else see you looking so tempting?”

Zuo Nian leaned his face over, rubbing against Duan Baisui like a clingy little puppy. “It’s… it felt too good. When I’m with you, I never worry about anything else. I know Gege will protect me.”

“Alright, keep acting spoiled like this, and I really will do something shameless right here.” Duan Baisui kissed the corner of his eye. “Can we go home now?”

“Mm.”

The afternoon sunlight was just right. In the bedroom, the two of them indulged in the most tender of acts.

Duan Baisui really had bought that “ring” for little Nian Nian. Zuo Nian cried and begged for mercy over and over, but Duan Baisui still didn’t remove it.

“You always finish so quickly and do it so many times. That’s not good for your body.”

Zuo Nian glared at him with a spoiled pout. “Gege, stop bullying me. Nian Nian feels awful…”

He had no real way to resist. All he could do was brace his pale feet against the Alpha’s shoulders, only for them to be pushed even wider.

By the final round, that strange “ring” was finally taken off. Zuo Nian lay trembling on the bed, releasing everything in a rush, accompanied by a light pattering sound that marked the end of the night.

The bed was soiled. Zuo Nian cried out in shame. He was almost twenty-six this year, and he still couldn’t control himself, just like a child.

Compared to his own mess, the culprit remained perfectly clean. Zuo Nian croaked, “I hate you, Gege…”

Duan Baisui carried him into the bath. Zuo Nian wouldn’t let him call the housekeeper to clean up. After changing his clothes himself, he wrapped the sheets up, snuck downstairs in the dark, and stuffed everything into the washing machine. He poured in a generous amount of detergent. Only once the machine started running did Zuo Nian finally feel at ease and walk away.

Over the next few days, Zuo Nian stayed upset with Duan Baisui and solemnly declared that, for now, Duan Baisui could only kiss him above the neck.

Knowing full well that he had gone a bit overboard that day, Duan Baisui agreed to the condition. The little fool rarely ever got angry, so he figured—let him “act fierce” just this once.

After abiding by the agreement for a few days, Duan Baisui started to feel that the little fool had stayed mad for too long. At night, he had even started sleeping in separate blankets again. Duan Baisui thought this couldn’t go on. So on a day when he finally didn’t have any social engagements, he bought flowers and cake and came home early.

Auntie Liu said Zuo Nian was in the bedroom. Duan Baisui hid the flowers behind his back, planning to give him a surprise.

Just as he twisted the doorknob open a crack, he heard Zuo Nian’s voice: “I heard from my dad that you’ve returned to the country. When will Dr. Jin be available?”

“All right, I’m free most of the time. Whatever works for your schedule.”

“Thank you so much. Then let’s have a meal together when the time comes.”

Duan Baisui instantly flared up.

Zuo Nian was calling another Alpha behind his back! And even arranging to have dinner together! If he hadn’t come home early, would he have been kept in the dark about this?

Fuming, he pushed the door open, tossed the bouquet onto the bed without care, and slammed the cake down heavily on the nightstand.

His legs long and stride wide, Duan Baisui reached Zuo Nian in just two steps. He reached out and snatched the phone from his hands.

Only then did he realize that Zuo Nian was on a video call with an elderly man with white hair and a youthful face, who was now staring wide-eyed at him through the screen.

The man’s mouth moved, clearly speaking, though Duan Baisui couldn’t hear a word. Zuo Nian had his earphones in.

He heard Zuo Nian respond, “Yes, yes, he’s my Alpha. Hehe, you flatter me.”

As he spoke, he tugged on the corner of Duan Baisui’s shirt. His big eyes full of confusion, he mouthed silently: “What are you doing?”

Duan Baisui handed the phone back to Zuo Nian and quietly stepped back.

Zuo Nian added politely, “Then I won’t bother you any longer. Thank you so much. Okay, I’ll be mindful.”

Once the call ended, Duan Baisui hurried to pick the flowers and cake back up, smiling as he said, “I bought you a present.”

Zuo Nian took off his earphones and said sternly, “Gege, you were rude just now.”

Duan Baisui answered seriously, “I’m sorry.”

Zuo Nian’s anger instantly melted away. He walked over to him and said, “It’s okay. But you can’t do that again next time, alright?”

“Mn,” Duan Baisui agreed, then asked, “That person just now, was that the Dr. Jin you mentioned before?”

“Yep! Dr. Jin is really nice. He was the one who did my surgery when I was little. Later, he retired and went abroad. My dad took me to see him again once, and he told me a lot of important things to watch out for. I told you about that, remember?” Zuo Nian smiled. “Now he’s been re-hired and brought back. I want to go to him for another check-up.”

At those words, Duan Baisui immediately grew worried. Was Zuo Nian sick again? He pulled Zuo Nian to sit down and asked seriously, “Is your gland bothering you again?”

Zuo Nian pressed his lips together and gently shook his head.

If it were just a routine check-up, there would’ve been no need for him to go to such lengths to contact the original surgeon, unless there was something he really needed to consult him about.

“Then what is it? Tell me the truth, baby.”

Zuo Nian looked at him, then lowered his head and gently touched his stomach. After a long pause, he finally said, “I… a few days ago, I thought I was pregnant…”

Duan Baisui: …

“I was really tired every day, and my appetite changed too. When I ate braised pork ribs at lunch, I even threw up…” Zuo Nian’s voice was barely louder than a mosquito. “Gege also said that Nian Nian’s… mm, chest got bigger, and there was milk… so, so I…”

Duan Baisui looked a little surprised and happy. “So what?”

That flat little belly, could there really be a tiny life in there?

“So Nian Nian went and got a check-up,” Zuo Nian sighed in disappointment at this point, “but the doctor said… Nian Nian doesn’t have a baby. It was just a false pregnancy.”

“Nian Nian is so dumb… actually had a false pregnancy…” Zuo Nian said with a bit of shame. “I originally wanted to surprise Gege. I wanted to give Gege a baby… a baby as smart as you…”

Duan Baisui stroked his head and comforted him, “So what if there’s no baby? There’s nothing to be sad about. We’re still young. If we want one, it’ll happen eventually.”

“But Gege, you’ve tried so hard, pulling Nian Nian to do it so many times every day. You’re already so amazing, but Nian Nian still can’t get pregnant. It must be Nian Nian who has the problem…” Zuo Nian began to blame himself.

He had looked it up long ago. S-rank Omegas had an extremely high conception rate. Most would get pregnant the first time they knotted. But it had already been so long for them. Duan Baisui had such strong energy, and almost every night, he would get intimate with him, always reaching the deepest place, knotting and marking him again and again. But even so, there was still no movement in his belly. That couldn’t be normal.

“Don’t think like that. Baby or not, it doesn’t matter. Who knows, maybe it’s my problem?” Duan Baisui pinched his cheek. “Be good, give your hubby a smile.”

Zuo Nian forced a very awkward smile and said, “There’s no way Gege would be the one with a problem. Gege must really like kids, right? Back when we went on vacation, you even said you wanted Nian Nian to give you three babies… but dumb Nian Nian can’t even give you one. Totally wasting all your little tadpoles!”

Duan Baisui burst out laughing with a “pfft”. “I was just teasing you when I said that. How could I seriously want you to have three? Childbirth is incredibly painful and dangerous. When I was little, I kept begging my dad for a younger sister, and he very seriously told me he would never let my little dad go through that pain again. I didn’t understand back then, but later, after sex ed, I finally learned how hard childbirth actually is.”

“I think… if my dad had known how painful it would be from the start, maybe he would’ve even tried to convince my little dad not to have me.”

Zuo Nian’s eyes widened. “Papa Duan… would really say that?”

Duan Baisui chuckled. “You don’t know him. He would.”

At that, Duan Baisui ruffled Zuo Nian’s hair and continued, “Baby, no one has the right to take away your ability to have children. But no one can force you to have them either. This kind of thing… It’s best to just let it happen naturally. Even if we don’t have kids, we’ll still live a wonderful life.”

“But…” Zuo Nian lowered his eyes, “Nian Nian wants a baby. Nian Nian was a child no one wanted… so I really want to become a good papa. I know I can do it.”

Duan Baisui looked closely at him. Zuo Nian had spent his whole life yearning for family, for a complete home, for love. He had even once asked, confused, why he had been abandoned. But who could say why? No one could give him that answer.

Duan Baisui loved him, respected him, and even more than that, he understood he couldn’t force his own beliefs onto Zuo Nian under the guise of “what’s best for you.”

“When’s the appointment?” Duan Baisui leaned in to kiss Zuo Nian’s cheek.

“Next Monday,” Zuo Nian replied softly.

“I’ll go with you.”

Zuo Nian’s eyes curved into a smile. “Mm.”

Then he frowned in worry again. “What if there is a problem…”

“If there’s a problem, you’re still my wife. What, am I gonna divorce you?” Duan Baisui teased with a grin.

Zuo Nian quickly shook his head. “No! Gege, don’t divorce me. If there’s a problem, Nian Nian… Nian Nian can still have surgery, and I’ll recover really fast and be healthy again.”

“Silly.” Duan Baisui flicked his nose. “How could I bear to leave you?”

Moved, Zuo Nian threw himself into his arms. “Thank you, Gege.”

“What are you thanking me for?” Duan Baisui kissed his hair. “Baby, do you think maybe the problem is I haven’t tried hard enough?”

Zuo Nian puffed out his cheeks. “Gege, don’t try to sweet-talk Nian Nian. You can go until morning. How could that not be trying hard enough? You’re already scary amazing.”

---