“I’m sorry what?” Lily’s surprise was apparent in her voice. She widened her eyes at the middle-aged doctor in front of them, anticipation, surprise, and glee swirled in her light brown orbs. She tightened her grasp on Zhuo Jingren’s arms – a thing that she subconsciously did in her nervousness. “I… Can you repeat what you just said?”
“I said… aside from the fact that you have a little hormonal imbalance, everything else is normal,” the doctor repeated patiently. This was not the first time that he had encountered a hopeful couple like them. Dr. Takashi eyed Zhuo Jingren before he gave the latter a small smile. When Zhuo Jingren informed him that they wanted to know if Lily was indeed incapable of conceiving, Doctor Takashi, couldn’t help but expect the worst.
However, this result differed greatly from his initial expectations. He watched as Lily froze, then tears started to stream down her cheeks before Zhuo Jingren hugged her.
“I’m alright.” It was a whisper or maybe even a murmur, filled with relief and joy. She nestled herself comfortable in Zhuo Jingren’s arms as she stamped this memory in her heart. She wanted to remember this until she grows old.
Lily let the happiness sink in as she slowly closed her eyes. She could feel her tears running down her cheeks. She could feel her heart leaping with joy. “I’m alright,” she repeated.
“You are,” Zhuo Jingren said as his hand slowly stroke Lily’s head. Waves of happiness and relief washed over him. He felt his heart soared before he closed his eyes, a small smile full of gentleness was on his face. Seeing Lily happy gave his heart a warm and light feeling. Lily was his everything.
After a few moments, Zhuo Jingren asked the doctor, “You mentioned something about her hormones? Is there something wrong?”
“Well… Mrs. Zhuo is far from being healthy. She is underweight. If she wants to get pregnant, please consider having a balanced diet. Exercise is good but she shouldn’t overwork herrself. Sleep deprivation and stress are the two main culprits contributing to this abnormality. My guess is… she had been working a lot in the past few years with terrible diet and less than six hours of sleep every night,” the doctor answered.
“But you don’t really have to worry, you just got married after all. Let me tell you this… eighty-five percent of couples get pregnant on the first year of their marriage. And you haven’t even celebrated your first anniversary yet. You still have a lot of time to be part of this eighty-five percent,” the doctor added before he laughed. “Jingren… don’t tire your wife too much. Maybe this is one reason for her stress as well,” he teased his friend, earning a laughter from both Lily and Zhuo Jingren.
“But you don’t really have to worry. There are a lot of ways to get pregnant nowadays. I can monitor your condition as well. I will be traveling back to the U.S. this month but after that I can visit Hong Kong and maybe check your wife once every month after that? How does that sound?”
“That would be perfect!” Lily answered while beaming. “Thank you very much.”
“No problem! Jingren is a very good friend of mine,” the older doctor said as he started to write a prescription for Lily. “Here… these vitamins are good for you. I’m not sure if you can get them in Hong Kong but I’m sure you can get them in Europe and U.S. Hmmm…and Japan as well, however, because of the high demand, you have to be very lucky to find them here. I’ve also prescribed some stress-relieving medication. It’s good for you to start eating some folic acid and also iron tablets since you have a little iron deficiency. Lastly, sleep well. Don’t let your husband tire you out.”
The doctor continued to give them some advice on how to stay healthy. After their appointment, Lily and Zhuo Jingren had a sumptuous lunch in one of the restaurants in Tokyo before travelling back to Hong Kong.
“Still feeling a little high?” Zhuo Jingren asked Lily who was in a daze as she stared at the clouds floating outside of their private jet.
“Hmmm… What do you think becoming a mother means?” Lily asked.
“Being selfless? I think motherhood is a choice that someone makes every day.”
“Do you…” Lily decided not to continue the words she was about to say. Will she become a good mother? A question that every mother asked themselves. However, it is futile to ask this question as no one really knows the qualification of being a good mother.
Was it providing everything for them? Was it raising a good, respectful, and kind child? Was it loving them unconditionally?
To be honest, Lily couldn’t answer that.
“You will be.” Zhuo Jingren’s gentle voice reached her ears. It was soft and sweet, which reminded her of a melody that she used to listen with her grandmother. Lily responded with a smile. Their relationship has already come to where they could already read each other’s mind. Somehow, this brought a comforting and warm feeling in Lily’s heart.
“Thank you,” she uttered. Whatever the future holds, she was confident that she could go through it with her husband.
“So? When would you like to have us arrange our wedding? And where? Maybe Italy?” he asked. “The gown that you chose a while back is almost done. In two months, they will complete it then you can have a fitting for the final touches.”
His words instantly earned a smile from Lily. “So you don’t want me to get pregnant without having a grand ceremony first?” she asked, her eyes had a glimmer of hope, like a new spring.
“Of course! You deserve the best.” He beamed. “Let’s do it in Italy. Your mother’s place. What do you think?”
“Alright. We can talk about it when we reach home . But Italy is good. I am okay with it.” Lily wanted to add that she will be okay as long as he is the one that she is going to marry. But she decided not to say it. She would only sound cheesy and hopelessly in love. And she wasn’t – not really.
