102: Chapter 102 What if I get pregnant?

An hour later.

Chen Fan leaned against the headboard, his chest rising and falling slightly. The quilt was pulled up to his waist, and the sweat on his body hadn't completely dried yet, shimmering with a thin layer of light under the moonlight.

Lin Xi huddled in his arms, her face buried in his chest. Her eyelashes were still wet, and a trace of a tear stain remained on her face.

"Didn't you say you wouldn't do anything?" Her voice was muffled and carried a nasal tone.

"Compared to being worse than a beast," Chen Fan's voice was low, carrying a hint of a smile, "I'd rather be a beast."

Lin Xi didn't look up; she moved her hand from his arm and gave his waist a pinch.

"Ow," Chen Fan said.

"Serves you right."

Chen Fan chuckled, pulled her closer into his arms, and rested his chin on the top of her head.

After a long time, Lin Xi's voice rang out softly:

"Will there come a day when you don't want me anymore?"

Chen Fan stroked her head. "I'm more afraid that you won't want me anymore."

Lin Xi broke into a smile through her tears but said nothing.

After a while, as if remembering something, she looked up at Chen Fan. "What if I get pregnant?"

Hearing these words, Chen Fan's heart tightened. He knew that if he didn't answer this question well, it would be quite troublesome.

Once a girl gives herself over, it's the moment when she feels the most insecure. What she's asking isn't about pregnancy; she's asking if you've thought about the future.

Chen Fan thought for a moment and looked at her, his gaze very serious.

"If you get pregnant, everything will be according to your wishes. If you want to give birth, we'll give birth; if you don't want to, then we'll have an abortion."

"Then what do you think?" Lin Xi asked.

"I don't want you to give birth."

A flash of bewilderment crossed Lin Xi's eyes. She looked at Chen Fan as if she hadn't heard clearly, or perhaps she had, but couldn't believe it.

Chen Fan met her gaze without flinching.

"You're only eighteen, just started university," he said. "If you really get pregnant, are you going to take a leave of absence? Are you going to go to class with a big belly? Are you going to spend a year under the judgmental eyes of others?"

Lin Xi was stunned.

"I can afford to raise a child, and I'm willing to," Chen Fan continued. "But what about you? Have you thought about it? You could have finished university properly, done whatever you wanted to do, and not be tied down by a child so early."

He reached out and tucked a stray lock of hair from her forehead behind her ear.

"I don't want you to give up the life you're supposed to have for the sake of this child."

Lin Xi's eyes slowly turned red.

"Then... do you not want our child?"

Chen Fan looked at her, his gaze very serious.

"Of course I want a child. But compared to a child, I want you more. I hope you can always live like a princess, without having to sacrifice for anyone or feel wronged for anyone. I want you to do what you want to do and go wherever you want to go."

He paused.

"As for the child," Chen Fan smiled, "we'll have one whenever you're ready, whenever you feel that being a mother won't stop you from being a princess."

He lowered his head and pressed a gentle kiss onto her forehead.

"Okay?"

Lin Xi didn't speak. But her tears finally couldn't be held back, sliding down her cheeks.

Chen Fan reached out and gently wiped away the tear stains on her face with his thumb. "Why are you crying again?"

Lin Xi shook her head. She wanted to say something, her lips moved, but she couldn't say anything. She buried her face in his chest, her shoulders shaking slightly.

Chen Fan didn't speak again; he just held her, his palm gently patting her back over and over, as if coaxing a child.

After a long time, Lin Xi's sobbing slowly stopped.

She looked up, her eyes and the tip of her nose red. The tear stains on her face were a mess, making her look like a little kitten caught in the rain.

Chen Fan looked down at her and couldn't help but smile.

"What are you laughing at?" she asked in a muffled voice.

"Nothing." Chen Fan reached out and helped wipe her face again. "I just think my Xixi looks quite pretty even when she cries."

Lin Xi glared at him, but the look of insecurity from before had vanished from her eyes.

Though her eyes were still red, the corners of her mouth had already curved up slightly.

"Chen Fan."

"Hmm?"

Lin Xi stared at him for two seconds, then suddenly leaned in and gave him a light kiss on the lips.

It was brief, like a dragonfly skimming the water; she pulled away as soon as they touched. Then her face turned slightly red, as if she hadn't expected herself to take the initiative to kiss him.

Chen Fan was stunned for a moment, then he smiled.

"Just once?"

Lin Xi rolled her eyes at him. "How many more times do you want?"

Chen Fan didn't say a word; he just pulled her into his arms, lowered his head, and kissed her cherry lips. This time, it was much longer and much deeper than before.

At first, Lin Xi gave him a symbolic push, her fingers propped against his chest, but she soon went soft. The hand clutching his arm slowly loosened and climbed up to his shoulder.

After the kiss, Lin Xi's eyes were shimmering with moisture, her lips were red, and her breathing hadn't yet steadied.

Chen Fan didn't do anything else; he just lowered his head and gave her a gentle kiss on the forehead.

"Go to sleep. It's already very late, and we have to go to school tomorrow."

Lin Xi huddled in his arms, gave a soft "mm," and buried her face in his chest.

Her fingers lightly traced two strokes on his collarbone, as if drawing circles, or as if confirming that he was still there.

After about a minute, Chen Fan felt the person in his arms' breathing slowly become even.

He looked down—Lin Xi's eyes were closed, her eyelashes slightly curled, and the corners of her mouth still held a slight curve. He didn't know if she was asleep or pretending to be.

Chen Fan didn't move. With one arm around her, he reached for his phone on the nightstand with his other hand and checked the time—it was past one in the morning.

He looked down at the person in his arms. She had rolled over, her face moving from his chest to the pillow, her hair scattered across it. He reached out and pulled the quilt up a bit, covering her exposed shoulder.

Then he leaned against the headboard and let out a long breath.

The things he had just said—"Of course I want a child," "We'll have one when you're ready"—sounded very moving, and Lin Xi had believed them.

But he knew in his heart that it was a lie.

He didn't want a child. At least not now. He didn't even want one in the next few years.

He had money now, a career, and plenty of freedom to squander. His life was just beginning its upward trajectory; how could he possibly let a child tie him down?

Furthermore, just as Chen Fan had said, Lin Xi was only 18, and he didn't want her to be restricted by a child either.

It seemed he would have to take proper precautions in the future.

If she really got pregnant one day, it would be a real problem.