I Want Her to See Only Me - Chapter 15

The hospital was crowded during the summer holiday, with long lines in front of every examination room. Sorrowful at the sight of the children waiting, Xia Xiuyin only allowed her niece to do two or three tests each time, then took her elsewhere to play. In total, Xia Yu’s mandatory examination rooms took two weeks to visit.

At the end of July, the scorching heat struck mercilessly. Xia Xiuyin sat inside a car and flipped through the test results, taking photos to send to Dr. Li.

Xia Yu dutifully held up the papers for her sister. With each “click” of the camera, she swiftly changed to a new page.

Xia Xiuyin didn’t hide anything from her, allowing Xia Yu to squint at the dense reports.

“Look.” Xia Xiuyin pointed at the diagnostic report accompanying the photos.

Xia Yu tilted her head, her attention first drawn to her neatly manicured fingertips before she finally noticed the words her sister was pointing at.

Right before a lengthy analysis, two stark yet convincing words.

“Normal,” she read in a small voice, then looked up at Xia Xiuyin.

“Now—” Xia Xiuyin’s tone lifted slightly, carrying an almost unnoticeable tease as she stroked Xia Yu’s cheek. “A’Yu can rest assured now?”

A low chuckle.

Xia Yu slowly raised the report in her hands, hiding her slightly parted lips, her straight nose, and the faint flush of her cheeks, until she met Xia Xiuyin’s gaze with a pair of dewy eyes, pleading.

So…Sister did know.

Xia Yu was a timid girl, and every time she had to go through the examination, she would be gripped with fear, yet she still tried to feign calmness before Xia Xiuyin.

Aunt Chen had dropped hints a few times, but Xia Xiuyin always casually changed the topic. She simply wanted to see how much the little girl before her could endure.

“Tell me, what are you so afraid of?” Xia Xiuyin pulled the child closer, pressing Xia Yu’s forehead against her own, separated by the thin sheet of paper.

Amused, Xia Yu took a deep breath, her eyes curved in a faint smile. “Hm?” She teased the little girl before her nonchalantly.

“Sister…” Xia Yu called hesitantly, pleading.

“Are you afraid of the result? Or…” Xia Xiuyin pulled her into an embrace. “Or are you afraid that, if the result isn’t good, I’ll toss you aside?”

Xia Yu’s eyes rapidly filled with tears.

“Sister…”

Xia Xiuyin nuzzled her nose against Xia Yu’s face. “Sister likes you, and she won’t toss you aside. I’ve said it before…I will always keep you.”

She was a woman of her word.

However, Xia Yu needed to understand the consequences.

“Sister.” Xia Yu clutched tightly at Xia Xiuyin’s sleeve, her expression solemn. She moved her lips deliberately, so that her sister could clearly hear every word. “I will always be with you.”

Even if… Even if Xia Xiuyin rejected her in the end, even if she chased her away like all those people before…

Later that day, Xia Xiuyin took Xia Yu to the aquarium. The coolness from the water seeped into their skin, alleviating the summer heat.

As they passed through the underwater tunnel, diamond-shaped rays glided past their heads, their massive shadows bringing with them the smell of the tide and a sense of the deep’s oppressive weight. Schools of vibrant marine fish swam in and out of view, occasionally interrupted by a small shark. Nearby, a staff member in a wetsuit flipped over.

Xia Yu’s hands pressed against the glass wall, her head tilted back, her mouth slightly agape in wonder.

The shifting lights refracted through the clear water into brilliant beams, which were absorbed by her clean eyes, filling her gaze with magnificent underwater scenery.

“Sister, look!” Xia Yu turned abruptly to Xia Xiuyin, her pure and tender smile stretching across her face. Xia Xiuyin saw herself reflected in those eyes, standing at the center of the world.

She was more resplendent than the world.

“A’Yu, did you get all the cream out?” Xia Xiuyin asked, weighing out caster sugar on a small scale and checking the ingredient list.

Xia Yu was picking Oreo crumbs off a toothpick. At her sister’s question, she sped up, pushing the small glass bowl toward Xia Xiuyin.

“Sister, is this enough?”

Xia Xiuyin weighed the freshly scraped cookie dough. “Mm, that’s enough.”

Xia Yu’s daily study routine was completed, and the humid heat outside was stifling, so Xia Xiuyin and Xia Yu stayed indoors to bake dessert for after dinner.

“Yogurt and frozen cheese cake…”

Aunt Chen was shooed out of the kitchen and ordered to rest in the living room. Yet the old woman couldn’t sit still; she had just come down from the cellar to fetch rum for the girls.

Xia Xiuyin lacked experience, so she didn’t force herself to use the oven and instead clumsily attempted a no-bake recipe.

“A’Yu, put the cake mold in the fridge. We’ll need to let it chill for a while.”

“Okay!” Xia Yu responded carefully.

Cheese was mixed with lemon juice, rum, gelatin sheets, and heavy cream before being poured into the cake mold to set in the fridge.

Xia Xiuyin wiped off the cream smudge by Xia Yu’s eye and clapped her hands, unable to contain her excitement. “There, it’s done.”

Aunt Chen, who had been carefully watching over them, also sighed in relief.

Xia Yu wiped the cream off Xia Xiuyin’s nose. The older girl’s face, framed by her hat, looked small against her large apron, making her seem a little childlike.

Xia Xiuyin was surprised at first, but then she smiled. She stood up straight and saw a car pull up outside the window.

“Someone’s here.” Xia Xiuyin took off her apron, followed by Xia Yu’s.

Before they could step out, a young girl’s voice called out, “Auntie—!”

“Auntie, I’m here!” The girl in shorts and a tank top left a trail of wet sand from her sandals all the way from the entrance into the living room, until she found Xia Xiuyin, circling around the black-and-white striped divider.

“Auntie, why didn’t you come greet me at the door?” The pretty girl pouted, hands on her hips.

Xia Xiuyin let go of Xia Yu and walked toward the girl. “Miaomiao, who brought you?”

Xia Yu stared blankly at her empty hands.

“I came myself!” The girl, clearly unbothered, stepped closer to Xia Yu, curious about the newcomer.

“Eh, where did this little one come from?”

Xia Yu had never interacted with someone her age before. She stood frozen in place, fingers nervously pinched together, allowing the girl’s face to practically touch hers as she explored the new addition to their home.

Cen Ao was slightly taller than Xia Yu, with large eyes and a single-fold eyelid. She stared with an imposing gaze, unafraid to look directly at the older girl.

“Miaomiao, this is your aunt’s little sister.” Xia Xiuyin stepped in slightly, shielding Xia Yu, who was more reserved, from Cen Ao’s boldness.

“A’Yu, her name is Cen Ao, but you can call her Miaomiao.” She knelt before Xia Yu. “You can call her ‘Miaomiao’.”

“… Mm,” Xia Yu nodded, still fiddling with her fingers.

Cen Ao’s eyes widened. “An aunt? Where did this ‘little sister’ come from? And do—do I have to call her ‘A’Yu’ too?” Before Xia Xiuyin could respond, Cen Ao mumbled to herself, “A’Yu, it’s a pretty name.”

Seeing how Xia Yu instinctively wanted to hide behind her, Xia Xiuyin held the little girl’s hand, gently rubbing the spot between her thumb and forefinger, and turned to Cen Ao. “This is your aunt’s little sister… You must call her ‘Aunt’.”

Cen Ao’s expressions contorted on her face as she furrowed her small eyebrows. “Aunt is older than Miaomiao, A’Yu is younger than Miaomiao.” She held up a hand, gesturing from Xia Yu’s head diagonally down to her own waist. Cen Ao shook her head. “I want to call her ‘A’Yu’ too.”

Xia Xiuyin composed herself, softening her voice. “Miaomiao…”

“A’Yu is older than you.”

Xia Yu was eight years old, while Cen Ao was seven.

She gave Xia Yu a comforting look, then looked up at Cen Ao with a smile. “Listen to me.”

Cen Ao could tell that Xia Xiuyin was serious, and it pained him slightly. Auntie had always spoiled him, just like Mommy.

He didn’t dare persist, instead sticking out his tongue. “Auntie is fine!”

“You have a big auntie, and A’Yu is your little auntie.” Still, Cen Ao continued to call Xia Yu “A’Yu.”

Xia Xiuyin frowned slightly.

Cen Ao reached a hand toward Xia Yu. “A’Yu…”

Noticing the disapproving look from Xia Xiuyin, he changed his tune. “Little Auntie, let’s go play outside!”

Xia Yu withdrew his gaze in fear, looking to Xia Xiuyin for guidance. “Sister…”

Cen Ao wasn’t shy; his eyes gazed at Xia Yu expectantly, radiating an air of Hurry up! Come play with me! He accepted Xia Yu almost instantly, and even complied with the “Auntie” rule, though only just.

Xia Yu’s face was small, her hands dainty, and her voice delicate and sweet. Her black eyes were pretty, and the fringes of her hair, held in place by a small hairpin, made her look like a doll.

“Little Auntie… hold my hand!” she urged, unable to contain herself.

“Miaomiao, it’s too sunny outside,” Xia Xiuyin said.

“That’s all right!” Cen Ao eagerly grabbed Xia Yu’s hand before her aunt could respond.

Her hand really was smaller! How cute!

“Auntie, Miaomiao and I are going to the backyard. There are lots of trees there, so you won’t get sunburned, Little Auntie.”

Cen Ao understood why Xia Xiuyin was protective of Xia Yu; she genuinely looked delicate and frail, like someone who needed to be cherished.

Before Xia Xiuyin could respond, Cen Ao’s mother returned from her errand.

“Xiuyin? What are you doing hiding in the kitchen with Miaomiao?”

While Xia Xiuyin was momentarily distracted, Cen Ao snuck away with Xia Yu, laughing.

“Auntie, Mom! We’re off!”

Xia Shulan took off her sunglasses, but before she could get a good look at the girl her daughter had taken off with, the two children had already disappeared.

Xia Xiuyin ordered a servant to go check on them.

The driver then walked into the living room carrying a box of gifts, which must have been what Xia Shulan used to buy some time.

“Sister Lan, how come you didn’t tell us you were coming over?” Xia Xiuyin asked.

Xia Shulan tossed her purse onto the sofa and sat down, accepting a glass of lemon water from Aunt Chen. “Thank you, Aunt Chen.” She pressed her red lips onto the glass, exhaustion written between her eyebrows. She glanced at Xia Xiuyin. “Xiuyin, I had another fight with that man. I’m here to hide for a bit.”

That man was, of course, Miaomiao’s father.

Xia Shulan had become pregnant before marriage and had hosted a grand wedding ceremony upon entering college at the age of twenty. After graduation, she stayed at home, becoming a full-time housewife. As an only child, she had been spoiled since birth, and deep down, she remained a naive girl who believed that marriage and love should naturally follow the fantasies of her youth.

“Does Miaomiao know?” Xia Xiuyin heard a burst of crisp laughter—it must have been Cen Ao’s.

“She doesn’t,” Xia Shulan said weakly, shooting a glance at her. “I’m still her mother, Xiuyin. Don’t underestimate me.”

Xia Xiuyin recalled her mother’s confrontations with Fang Duan; those scenes were now nothing but fragmented images of defeat.

She took a sip of lemon water, lowering her gaze.

“You’re always welcome here, along with Miaomiao. Sister Lan can stay as long as she likes.”

Xia Xiuyin had no intention of prying into Xia Shulan’s marital dispute with her husband, nor did she care to know the details of the argument that led Xia Shulan to bring Cen Ao over to her house in a fit of anger.

She had no interest in the salacious affairs of the rich, which was precisely why Xia Shulan liked her.

“Xiuyin, are you serious?” Xia Shulan rested her chin on her hand, a smile on her face that was uncannily similar to Cen Ao’s. “I can stay as long as I like?”

“As long as you like,” Xia Xiuyin confirmed gently.

“Then I’m moving in tomorrow.”

Xia Xiuyin was slightly taken aback. “What do you need? I’ll ask Uncle Liu to purchase whatever it is you need. There’s no need for Sister Lan to make the trip.”

Xia Shulan laughed. “I knew I couldn’t outwit you.”

“Xiuyin, why didn’t you attend the two dinner parties at the old residence? It was almost unbearable how bored Miaomiao and I were.” She bit into a piece of the pear.

“Could it have been…because of that child?”

“Which child?” Xia Xiuyin’s fingers tapped lightly on the bottom of her glass cup.

In the backyard, Cen Ao’s cheers were about to lift the roof off the house. He was playing well with Xia Yu.

No one could dislike Xia Yu.

“My family’s,” Xia Xiuyin replied, her voice soft yet firm, without an ounce of uncertainty.

Xia Shulan raised an eyebrow.