Ai clapped. "Yes, I was going to ask you the sa," she nodded. "How about you help Ailun with essays?"
Alix was left dumbfounded. "I had just helped him in passing."
"But it was so good! You definitely have the skills."
She frowned. "But why do you need my help? Aren't you a writer yourself? You are the best person to help him."
Her brow twitched hard. Xing Bi and Guiying coughed.
Ai coughed. "I…I…am kind of resting nowadays."
"Huh?"
"I an I am pregnant," she pointed at her belly. "So well…I still get sick a lot. The doctor has advised to rest."
Ailun nodded. "Mom gets sick a lot. So only pastry aunt can teach !"
"But Xing Bi is an editor. So she can help you."
Xing Bi choked. "Ah ? Ahahaha…" she sweated. "I cannot help him."
"Why not?"
"I an…my brain kind of works only for novels. Essays are a different ballga, especially kids essays. I tend to make it more complicated than easier hehe…"
Ailun nodded. "Aunt helped too but it was very confusing."
Alix grimaced. "Okay then…Cai Guiying?"
She choked on the cake's bite she was swallowing.
"? I-I…I am taking a break from writing!" she quickly said.
"Why?" Alix narrowed her eyes. "Why break? Are you in a slump? Or is it because you are slacking on your diet that your brain juice is running out?"
For a mont, Guiying paused and felt a tinge of a strange emotion well in her chest. Alix's squinted and demanding gaze struck a familiar chord in her heart.
Guiying coughed. "No, no. I am eating well. Zixin won't let skip any als anyway. I just want to test out so new style so I am taking my ti…"
Ailun nodded. "I don't want to disturb Aunt Guiying."
Alix smiled. "Aren't you a very responsible boy?"
"Yay!"
"What about Uncle Yating and your father, who also happen to be the Chief Editors of their publishing companies?"
"..."
Suddenly, Ai realized the number of creative people within the family and the friends circle was too large.
Ailun cried. "Nooo I don't want Uncle Yating. He is super good but Ziyi always bullies and he always takes Ziyi's side! I face bias!"
"And your father?"
"Dad is super strict, it's no fun with him!"
Alix's brow twitched.
How co they have reasons for every compatible person?
She sneered. "I don't know what level of strictness you have faced, kid, but he cannot beat . I am a monster."
"..."
"But pastry aunt helped so nicely that day!"
"It was just so small help in passing. I didn't feel the need to grill you like a sandwich in a toaster."
Ailun held her hand, sniffling. "But I want to learn from you Pastry Aunt…"
" too!" Ruwen happily flailed his arms, unaware of the danger of having Alix as his teacher.
"Yes, yes!" Ai didn't give her much ti to think. "Actually, it's better if you are stricter than us. Children need so discipline," she nodded, followed by Guiying and Xing Bi.
Xing Bi said, "I think we also tend to be softer. Only if," she coughed, "I wasn't so useless with children's essays, I would have definitely helped them."
Ai grabbed her hand with twinkling eyes. "So will you agree? It's difficult to take care of their studies and everybody else is also busy here and there, so only you-hah!"
She gasped all of a sudden. "The baby kicked just now!"
"What!"
"Nooo, I want to feel it too!" Ailun cried and hastily jumped on the bed. He placed his palm on her belly and a few seconds later, felt a small kick.
Ai shone. "It kicked again!"
Ailun nodded hard. "I felt it too! I felt it too!"
Jun ca rushing a minute later and panted breathlessly. He sat beside her and mirrored what Ailun did a minute ago. This ti, it was a longer wait but eventually it ca again and Jun burst into tears.
"The baby really kicked…I can really feel it…"
"Yay!!!" Everybody clapped with delight.
Everybody had now gathered around Ai and cheering with this sweet developnt but Alix's attention was more focused on Jun. She stared at him in disbelief, watching his tears fall down his cheeks.
Is it…really that emotional?
"Alix, why are you still there? Co here, co here," Ai patted the space beside her. "The baby looks to be in a good mood today so you will definitely get to feel the kick too!"
"? No. I am fine here."
Ailun dragged her near Ai anyway and pouted. "Pastry aunt should join us too!"
"No, I really am fine-"
Ai gently placed her hand on the belly beside where Jun already held his. Alix sat completely stiff.
Then it ca. A soft feeling bumping against her palm as if sothing just touched it.
Jun felt it the second ti and his floodgates of tears broke yet again. Xing Bi laughed. "All you n here are just the sa! Rough and tough on the outside but total softies on the inside haha."
"Thank you Ai…" Jun managed to utter the words of gratitude for Ai amidst the overwhelming feeling of joy brimming his chest to the max.
She grinned. "Hehe."
She then looked at Alix. "Did you feel it, Alix?"
"...Yes."
Her fingertips trembled and she felt an ache in her chest as if sothing was tightly squeezing it. Knowing that babies kicked was common knowledge but feeling the actual kicks was a whole nother experience for her. She couldn't pinpoint the source of the ache in her chest but it didn't feel painful to her. Instead she felt it…liberating.
Knowing that she had only killed innocent people in the past that put blood on her hands - to now feel the sign of life with those sa hands felt overwhelmingly liberating.
And then Jin's face flashed in her mind.
She had understood what he did but it was now that the weight of his actions poured upon her like a heavy storm.
If not for Jin breaking the flow of ti, this world wouldn't have existed.
Where Jun and Ai were alive and living their lives as they should have been.
Where Lin got another chance to live his own life rather than eting a miserable death in the underworld's base.
And where Alix got to live in a world free of her blindness towards her step-father and a dysfunctional family.
She felt a hand press on top of hers and her gaze lifted to see a warm smile on Ai's lips.
"I know you said you don't believe in marriage and companionship but this...is still a good feeling, right?"
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