Chapter 141— I Love You, Qianhua

For one of the largest government hospitals in City A, City People's hospital had a small parking lot. Due to high volume of patients that they received daily, there was always some sort of traffic there.

Only those that came in and left early would be able to avoid the drama that usually erupted when relatives of patients argued about who came first and whose relative was almost dying so they deserved to park first.

It was usually very chaotic. Already, the government was working on expanding the parking lot. It was recently announced that they had awarded the contract to an experienced architectural firm.

As Su Qianhua walked in front, the parking lot was so quiet that she could hear Jiang Philip's footsteps. They were light, so much so that it seemed like he was floating instead.

When she got to the car, she stopped to look at him.

He was walking absentmindedly, looking so lost in thought that he was about to walk straight into her. She quickly held a hand out.

Jiang Philip woke up when he felt a hand hit his chest. Seeing how close he was to her got his brain working. He mumbled an apology, opened the door and made sure she was properly seated before going to the driver's side.

Once he was belted in, Su Qianhua said, "Philip, we need to talk."

"What about?" He asked with a sigh. Anyway, she made decisions arbitrarily. It was her decision to abort before, now it was hers to keep. Either way, he didn't have a say.

For some reason, the realization made him feel very sad.

"I will have full custody of this baby." Su Qianhua didn't know why it came out like that. She actually wanted to apologize for shocking him and talk about the way forward, but somehow, it broke her heart to see him so listless.

She wanted to see him react. She really loved it when his eyes lit up, like exotic lanterns on a dark night. When she saw her reflection in those blue eyes, it made her feel...special. So she wanted to shock him somehow.

But he did not rise up to the bait.

Sure, he could feel a hot emotion begin to stir, but he refused to give in to it. Remembering how she stormed out of the car the other time, he decided to play it safe. "Let's have this conversation at home, please?"

Su Qianhua took one look at his dimmed eyes and nodded. Seeing him like this honestly made her heart hurt. She couldn't make sense this feeling at all. Did she actually care more than she knew?

The drive to Su Qianhua's house, which had become their nest, was made in silence. Over the past couple of months, the times Jiang Philip went to the hotel grew lesser and lesser and he spent most of the time in her house.

At first it was because she was emotionally unstable and he didn't want to leave her alone. Then it was because of the severe morning sickness. Then it was because he wanted to protect her from her mother's wrath in case she came back. Later on, he couldn't even find any excuse.

He just wanted to be with her. Seeing her light up over a funny face he made or the taste of his latest culinary product made him inexplicably happy.

When the number of times she cried herself to sleep reduced drastically, he knew he was doing the right thing. Her peaceful face was worth any sacrifice he had to make.

Su Qianhua too, for some reason pretended not to notice when the number of his clothes on her house increased from two to four to ten, and then his entire box.

She was trying not to notice how comfortable she felt having him around. Even her apartment, which she only treated like a place to sleep whenever she could, now seemed more like home with him there.

She sat on the sofa facing the dining table while Jiang Philip sat adjacent to her. She turned her body slightly in order to face him properly.

When the light in the hallway went off, Su Qianhua began to speak, "I had been thinking about this for a few weeks now. I'm not sure what changed. Maybe it was hearing the baby's heartbeat. Maybe it was the pregnancy book I saw online. Maybe it was the picture of the cute baby my former classmate posted on our group chat.

"Maybe it was even your tender care of me these past two months." She paused to gather her thoughts. Jiang Philip didn't say a word, face expressionless.

"I just thought that if I didn't say it out today, I would never be able to summon up courage again. I'm still not sure that this is the right thing to do —not at all, but I figured I'll go for it. The future is uncertain, but- but I think I want to do this.

"I'm sorry Philip. I'm sorry for springing yet another surprise on you. It wasn't my plan. And ignore what I said in the car. I didn't mean it." She finished humbly. She felt he deserved a sincere apology for the way she handled the whole thing.

If nothing, she saw him as a friend already. It was not her way to treat friends like disposable items.

For a few seconds, no one spoke. Only the rustle of red and brown leaves as they rained down from dried up trees outside the apartment provided some type of sound.

Jiang Philip's blank expression eventually had some sort of change. He raked his hands through his short hair as he said, "I take it that you still don't want to consider marrying me." It was a question that was posed as a statement.

Su Qianhua noticed his action. She absentmindedly thought it was a good thing she gave him a hair cut some days ago. The short hair made him look even more handsome and boyish. She sighed before saying,

"Philip, marriage is a huge thing. It doesn't make sense for two people to tie themselves down just because they made a mistake. Everyone makes mistakes, but we don't have to upend our lives because of it."

"Why do you think of marriage in such negative terms? Is it such a bad thing for two consenting adults to decide to spend their lives together?" Jiang Philip wondered.

Su Qianhua was determined not to let this conversation end up in a quarrel. She looked at him quietly, her eyes looking big for her small face,

"I believe people need to marry for love Philip. I may not look it, but I'm a romantic at heart. I think marriage shouldn't be a decision of convenience, it should be an inevitable juncture we get to at some point in a passionate relatio—"

"I love you."