Chapter 175 - Egg Retrieval Day (9)

....

About 30 minutes later, Xiao Lei woke up, feeling groggy and tired. The bright light that suddenly entered her eyes caused her to groan slightly. "Too bright..." she murmured slowly.

She then glanced around and saw her son sitting on her right side. To her surprise, Luo Guangying, and Callum were sitting next to her son as well. She had thought that they would leave immediately after they donated their s.p.e.r.ms. 

When she glanced at her son and was about to say something, Xiao Zhihao smiled and pointed to her left with his chin. 

Looking at the direction of where he was pointing, Xiao Lei saw that Han Ye was sitting at her left with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. His hand was on the bed... holding hers. 

"Phillip said that he never let go of your hand..." Luo Guangying walked to her and said in a hushed tone. "I guess he was tired out from his hectic schedule the last few days..." 

Xiao Lei nodded. Han Ye's weekday schedule was packed full to the brim with barely enough time for him to sleep, and so, she was grateful that he took time to come and accompany her instead of resting at home.  

The exact moment after the nod, Han Ye's head fell forward slightly, and he woke up abruptly. Slightly dazed, he blinked for a few seconds before he remembered where he was. He then quickly turned to look at Xiao Lei.

When he saw that she was awake, he asked softly, "How are you feeling? Do you feel pain anywhere?"  

"Not so great..." 

"Well, I guess not... Not after 15 eggs were taken out of you," Luo Guangying said. He then smiled kindly and added, "I know that we are paying you, but I still have to thank you. It must've been hard for you, and I doubt it would get any easier in the coming months."

Xiao Lei smiled, but she did not say anything. She still felt groggy and did not really want to talk. All she wanted to do was to sleep back again.  

And Luo Guangying could tell with the way her eyes moved up and down slowly. 

"We can't be seen sending her back, and at her current state, I prefer her to be someone she knows," he continued while looking at Han Ye. After taking a brief glance at their still interlinked hands, he asked, "I know you're rushing for a date, but can you please send her back? We will send Zhihao back to school."  

The mere mention of date caused Han Ye and Xiao Lei to both slowly and not-so-subtlely pulled their hands back before looking away from each other awkwardly.

Han Ye then coughed slightly before nodding. "Yeah, that's not a problem..."

....

As per his promise to Luo Guangying and Callum, Han Ye sent Xiao Lei back to their apartment building. To avoid any mishaps, he even escorted her all the way back to her apartment unit. Before leaving, he instructed her, "Take the medicines as prescribed. If it hurt badly, just give me a call."

She nodded. "I'm fine now. Just go to Angela. Have fun..."

Han Ye nodded. "Rest well..." 

Before she closed the door, he even added, "I'm serious! If you are feeling really unwell, just give me a call!"

She rolled her eyes and waved a nonchalant hand at him as she said, "Go! I'd be fine, Han Ye. I'm not a child."  

She then closed the door. Han Ye glanced at the door for a few seconds before turning away and walking toward the lift. 

He had been having a weird feeling somewhere near his heart since this afternoon, especially after she opened up her heart slightly and talked to him about her past. As traitorous as it might be, at that time, there was a strong urge boiling deep within him; one that was telling him to stop her from going through with it. 

Especially having known the true reason behind her fear of needles. There would be more injections to come; especially if they were to fail in this round. Han Ye had done his reading before. IVF was a good thing for couples who had troubles conceiving naturally, either because of their gender preferences or because of their physical conditions. However, while it had brought joy to many, it had also caused mental and physical damages to others. 

Especially when they failed numerously... The toil on an expectant mother's mind was heavy. Too heavy. 

Han Ye did not want Xiao Lei to go through all that. To him, she had been through a lot. From her words, he could tell that his initial assumption about her disappearance was correct. Someone went after her back then... and it was most likely one of the men who called himself her uncle. 

The anguished of having to watch her parents' dying in front of her while being helpless, the pain of being betrayed by someone close to her, the constant fear that someone might harm her husband or her son... All of these were no doubt heavy burdens for her to carry alone...

Han Ye promised his late wife that he would protect Xiao Lei, and he wanted to do so in every manner. Including preventing her from being further harm both physically and mentally.

Yet he did not. 

How could he?

He had no right to tell her not to. 

Whether as her friend Han Ye or her boss Han Ye... he did not have a right to persuade her not to go through with it. Besides, he was a man with a girlfriend. He really ought to spend more time thinking about his girlfriend instead of another woman. 

With a sigh, Han Ye slowly went into the lift and pressed the Close button.

Not long after he left, Xiao Lei opened the door slightly and peeked out. Once she was sure that he was gone, she closed the door back. 

"Did he... have feelings for me?" she thought as she went to the couch to sit down. When she thought about how he was holding her hand earlier and how he had been with her throughout the entire time just as he promised, her heart jumped a little.

Yet she did not like this feeling.

"This isn't right..." she thought before shaking the previous thought out of her head. "I'm a married woman..."  

She took out her wallet and looked at her husband's photo as she mumbled, "Yunjie, if you don't come back soon, I might be unable to fight this loneliness anymore..."

Xiao Lei's biggest fear was to be left all alone in this world again. And she felt stupid and weak for constantly having this thought. Yet she could not get rid of it. No matter how she tried to convince herself, there was always a constant feeling that she would be left alone again.

Pulling her knees up and wrapping her arms tightly around it, she started crying softly as she thought, "I don't like this feeling..."

Perhaps it was the current state of her mind, or perhaps it was all the extra hormones that she had been taking recently... but she felt extremely vulnerable right now, and she was afraid that she might develop some feelings for another man because of it.

....