Very dark circles under my eyes? Yan felt embarrassed by her question and subconsciously reached out to touch the area under her eyes. “Is it that bad?”
Xu Yanwan leaned closer and took a better look. “It’s quite severe. Are you sleeping badly recently? Or, is it something important?”
In truth, Yan had not thought of telling anybody about it. However, thinking that Xu Yanwan was a girl just like her, as well as someone who has known Han Qing since they were kids, she decided it wasn’t a big deal if she told her. Thus, she told Xu Yanwan about what she wanted to do.
After listening to her, Xu Yanwan was dumbstruck for a long while before she came back to her senses. “Do you mean to say that… you want to celebrate Han Qing’s birthday?”
“Yes, that’s right.” Yan nodded. “At first, I wanted to give him a present, but after thinking about it, he doesn’t seem to lack anything. So, I might as well handcraft something of sentimental value for him.”
“Then, don’t you know—” He has never celebrated his birthday. Xu Yanwan nearly said that out loud, but she paused before the words came out. She recalled the scene she had witnessed just now—the man she liked was crouched in front of another woman, and his gaze was soft and warm as he stared at the other person. That was something she had never seen before. Moreover, Han Qing had never looked at her in that way before!
“What is it?” Yan asked curiously. She was curious about the rest of the sentence because Xu Yanwan had stopped speaking part way.
Xu Yanwan snapped back to reality and smiled at her, pretending nothing had happened as she asked, “Ah, I meant to ask; have you told this to anybody else?”
“No…”
“That’s good then.” Smiling, she continued, “After all, it’s a surprise you’re preparing for him. If you tell too many people, somebody might accidentally spoil the surprise by letting it slip. What will you do then?”
“That won’t happen; I’ve only told you about it. Oh, I also asked Xuzheng! I heard he grew up with you and Han Qing; is that true?”
“Lin… Xuzheng?” She felt uncertain when she heard the name. I can’t believe Yan told him about this! However, after pondering over it, she realized that it was to be expected. After all, how could Yan not come into contact with Lin Xuzheng given Lin Xuzheng and Han Qing’s relationship? Even so, did Lin Xuzheng not react when Yan told him about this matter? He should also know about the fact that Han Qing never celebrated his birthdays, right?
“Yup, that’s the guy I’m talking about.”
“You’ve asked him about it?”
“Yeah. Is there a problem?”
“Nope,” she replied, coming back to her senses. Then, she smiled but her eyes looked a little sad. What was I thinking about just now? I thought she didn’t know about it. But, it turns out that she does know about it. Besides, there is no way Lin Xuzheng doesn’t know about it. That must mean he has agreed to Yan celebrating Han Qing’s birthday. Perhaps, Han Qing’s psychological issue about celebrating his birthday has been cured by his girlfriend. It’s not that odd seeing as he is deeply and emotionally attached to her… Just what am I fantasizing about?
Xu Yanwan could tell that she had changed—she had become terrifying. To think that she had hoped to use Yan’s ignorance to provoke Han Qing so that there would be cracks in their relationship, leading to their breakup. When that time comes… I…
As the thought crossed her mind, she swiftly stopped her thoughts from continuing in that direction. “I understand your sincerity in trying to celebrate Han Qing’s birthday, but you have to take good care of your health too. Don’t push yourself so hard that you fall sick before celebrating his birthday.” As she spoke, she poured a cup of tea for Yan and pushed it in front of her. Then, she continued in a light voice, “Right now, the dark circles under your eyes are very severe. One glance and anybody can tell that you have not been sleeping much. Did Han Qing not ask you about it?”
“Uh… I’ll be fine. After all, I slept in his office for a long time this afternoon. It made up for all the sleep I’ve been missing recently. You have a good relationship with him, right? Please keep this a secret for me, okay?”
A helpless expression flitted across her eyes as she nodded. “Of course. You don’t expect me to tell him about it, do you?”
“Thanks!”
After dinner, they parted ways after saying goodbye.
After Yan got in the car, Xu Yanwan stood motionless, thoughtfully staring at the direction Yan had left in. If Han Qing was willing to change and celebrate his birthday with Yan, then… I’m afraid I don’t stand a chance anymore. Then, she closed her eyes. Give up; just give up. If I had a chance with him, we would have gotten together a long time ago. Why would we drag it out until now? If he had no feelings for me before, then he won’t fall in love with me now. Xu Yanwan, why are you still dreaming about this? Quickly wake up from your dream! Wake up!
Afterward, Xu Yanwan opened her eyes again. Unfortunately, her eyes were still clouded over. Perhaps, I won’t be able to get over it for the rest of my life.
…
Time flew by. Soon, Han Qing’s birthday was the following day. Luckily, Yan managed to complete her 9,999 paper cranes.
Not only did she manage to complete her memento, but she also managed to make time to go to the hospital to take a pregnancy test. She planned to show it to Han Qing as a surprise when they were celebrating his birthday tomorrow. I wonder how he will react to this? Then, she entered dreamland with endless expectations.
That night, she had a dream. In her dream, she saw Han Qing proposing to her after he saw her pregnancy test results. Subsequently, the Yan in her dreams cried tears of happiness as she agreed to marry him. When she woke up, the corner of her eyes was wet with tears. Out of the blue, she was hit by a feeling of sadness for no reason… Thus, she sat up and wiped away her tears. The dream she had last night was a happy one—Han Qing had proposed to her in her dream. So, why am I feeling so sad?
She did not know what was wrong with her, but she sat there for a long while before she could get her emotions under control. Then, she got off the bed and changed her clothes. Seeing the presents and the test results laid out on the table, she felt a trace of warmth. Perhaps, I have been overthinking things recently. Maybe that’s why I’m feeling so upset now.
She took a deep breath, then washed up and got herself ready. After that, she prepared to leave the house. Just for today, she had made a reservation at a restaurant. She also prepared a cake and red wine, complete with candles and everything else, to go with it.
Although these things seemed like what a guy would usually do, she was not bothered. They were a couple anyway. Therefore, the question of who should be the one doing these things was not important to her. To her, what was important was who she was doing it for and who she was spending her time with.
Yan had booked a private room. When she went into the room, the staff member told her that the place had been completely set up. Moreover, the staff member added, “Miss Zhou, your boyfriend is such a lucky man. I’ve worked here for such a long time, but this is the first time a lady has taken the initiative to prepare a surprise for her boyfriend.”
Another staff member chimed in, “That’s right! That’s right! To find a girlfriend as caring as you are, Miss Zhou, your boyfriend is so lucky!”
“Still…” One of the staff members had just joined them, so she was a little hesitant to speak. “Isn’t Miss Zhou lowering herself too much by doing all this?”
