CHAPTER 66: CHAPTER 66

~Fan Xiao ~

He’d linger a little. He’d complain more. He’d tell me I should "stop yelling at people" because one day someone would "break my skull."

I told him they could try.

He rolled his eyes every time.

But then something changed. I don’t know when, I don’t know how. I just started noticing little things. Like how he’d always pretend he didn’t care but still ask if I had eaten. Or how he’d insult me and then bring me snacks. Or how he’d pay for me even though he was broke asf.

He cared. The idiot cared so loudly it was quiet.

The night everything changed was the night I saw him cornered behind a club. Three guys had dragged him toward the back door, and the second I heard him shout, something inside me snapped. My body moved before my brain caught up.

I didn’t fight fair. I didn’t fight clean. I didn’t even fight like a person who planned to stop at jail. I just ripped them off him, hit whoever was closest, and kept hitting until the others ran. And I remember shaking, actually shaking, because the thought of arriving a second later made me want to burn the whole city.

Lee Know was on the ground, breathing hard, trembling, trying to pretend he wasn’t terrified.

"Are you hurt?" I asked, kneeling down.

"No," he whispered, lying through his teeth, his voice breaking. "I’m fine."

"You’re not fine."

He grabbed my shirt like he didn’t want me to move even an inch. "Don’t say anything," he said. "Please."

I’d never heard him say "please."

I put my hand on his back, gently, because he looked like he’d shatter if I breathed wrong. "I’m here," I said, and I meant it in a way that scared me.

He looked at me really looked, like he was seeing something he wasn’t supposed to and my heartbeat felt wrong, too fast, too loud, too... aware of him.

And then he kissed me.

His hand grabbed my hoodie like he thought I’d disappear if he didn’t hold on tight. It wasn’t neat. It wasn’t soft. It was desperate, the kind of kiss someone gives when they’re terrified and relieved at the same time.

My brain didn’t even process it at first. I just froze.

Then I kissed him back. Hard.

When he finally pulled away, he looked at me like he regretted breathing. "Don’t make a big deal out of it," he said, wiping his lips, completely red-faced. "It just... happened."

"Right," I said. "Totally. Casual life-or-death kiss. Happens every day."

"Shut up."

"You shut up."

He groaned and hid his face in my chest, mumbling something I couldn’t hear.

And that was the dumb moment I realized I was screwed. Because I didn’t hate him anymore. I didn’t even dislike him. I wanted him safe, alive, close, breathing, mine.

And once I know I want something, I don’t let go.

I followed him to this country without telling him.

And we met again. And the cycle continued.

***

Back in the hospital.

Pregnant.

With twins.

Lee Know shifted on the bed, pulling me out of my memories.

He stared at me. "Why are you smiling like that?"

"Nothing."

"You look suspicious."

"I’m allowed to look however I want. I’m a father of two now."

He groaned loudly and covered his face. "Don’t say it like that..."

"Two little monsters, made by us..."

"Fang Xiao, stop..."

"Who will probably inherit your attitude....."

He shot up. "MY attitude?!"

"Yeah, and my brains, thank God, so they won’t end up failing common sense like you do...."

He threw a pillow at me. "I DID NOT FAIL MATH...or common sense, just because I didn’t have money when you met me, and probably still don’t have doesn’t mean I was dumb."

"Oh right, you just barely passed..."

"Get out!"

"I’m not leaving you alone!"

"Then shut up!"

"I can’t, I’m in emotional shock..."

"You’re in emotional stupidity...."

"Same thing!"

We were yelling at each other so much the nurse opened the door and said, "Sir, please don’t stress the patient."

I pointed at Lee Know. "HE’S stressing ME."

The nurse sighed and walked away.

Lee Know dropped back against the bed and let out a long breath.

I sat beside him, quieter this time.

"You scared me," I said, voice low.

He looked away. "...I know.

"I thought I’d lost you."

His shoulders trembled just a little. "I tried not to think about you. It made it worse."

My chest hurt. "Don’t do that again."

He swallowed. "I didn’t choose to.mm"

"I know. I know. I’m not blaming you. I’m blaming the whole world."

He finally faced me. "We have twins."

"Yeah," I whispered. "We do."

"And you’re going to freak out every day, aren’t you?"

"Yes. Absolutely."

He laughed under his breath. It wasn’t loud, but it was real.

I leaned forward and pressed my forehead against his. "Don’t scare me like that again."

"I won’t."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

I exhaled hard, like all the air I’d been holding finally came out.

"Good," I muttered. "Because I’m not raising two gremlins alone."

"Gremlins?" He smacked my arm again.

"They’re YOUR kids."

**My kids I thought, so I was finally going to be a father. Hell I couldn’t even take care of my own self and now I had to take care of someone else, two little strange labubus. If Lee know didn’t want this baby and or babies I probably wouldn’t care much. He kept telling me of how much he wanted a baby and wanted to try for it. Normally I always only heard about people of the ABO world and I didn’t even know I could fall in love with one. But now, Lee know was my whole world.

***

"They’re yours too!" he blurted out

"Exactly, that’s why they’ll be gremlins."

He rolled his eyes, but his fingers slid into mine.

"Now Fan Xiao tell me the truth, why am I always being targeted, I know it has something to do with you."