"Look! Look what Yue Qi gave me~ It"s so pretty." Mei"er smiled, she showed Xiao Jun the pouch Yue Qi had bought for her. At the age of 14, she was nearing the age of marriage in Han."You"re so in love, Mei"er." Xiao Jun laughed, she gazed at the fishes swimming in the small pond and threw some food towards them, watching them swarm around the food as they opened their little mouths to eat.
Mei"er blushed and sat down next to her, "Is it scary?" she asked, laying her head on the table.
"What? What is scary?" Xiao Jun questioned, softly tucking the loose strands of hair behind the girl"s ear. "Giving birth, you"re so close to having your child and I heard that it"s like having a foot in both life and death." Mei"er replied.
Xiao Jun smiled softly and sighed, "It"s apart of life, Mei"er. All mothers who have given birth to children have gone through this process. Is it scary? Yes and no. I"m afraid that I"ll leave my child behind but I"m also afraid of my child leaving me before they can even talk."
Nodding, Mei"er gave Xiao Jun a hug, "You can do it, you"re strong and I know both of you will be safe."
A while later, Yue Qi had come, dressed in nice robes instead of his rough garment, to take Mei"er out for a stroll in the city.
Sitting outside still, she felt something be draped around her shoulders and arms hugging her as a chin rested on her shoulder.
"Why are sitting out here without someone to accompany you?" a husky voice asked, whispering into her ear and making her shiver. Knowing that it was just Yun Long, she laughed, "I gave people accompanying me everyday, left and right, let me have my peace and quiet."
Yun Long chuckled and kissed her cheek before sitting next to her, "Alright, if you want, I can get rid of some of them."
She shook her head and gave him a smile, "It"s alright, I know they"re only fussing so much because they care. Their Madam is close to giving birth and their Lord could be sent out to the fronts at any moment."
Holding hands, the two didn"t say anything as they looked at the leaves blowing in the wind and the fish in the pond swimming. They simply sat in silence and enjoyed each others" company.
During dinner, Yun Long kept glancing over at Xiao Jun to make sure the dishes were of her taste but he frowned when he noticed that she wasn"t eating as much as she usually did.
"What"s wrong? Why aren"t you eating?" he asked. Yun Long set down his chopsticks and went over to her, rubbing her back as she drank tea. "I"m alright, I just don"t feel like eating anymore. My stomach makes it harder for me to eat, I get full easily." she smiled.
Yun Long sighed and brought a hand to her stomach, rubbing is softly. To say that he wasn"t scared about being a father would be a lie, as he wanted his children to grow up well but he wasn"t quite sure about himself.
Standing not too far apart, Yue Qi wanted to hold the other"s hand but he knew that it would be improper in others eyes.
Mei"er to the side glanced at Yue Qi and then took a hold of his hand. "What are you so scared about? Everyone knows about our engagement..." Mei"er blushed, she didn"t care what others said, she gave up on caring long ago.
Blushing, Yue Qi nodded and together they went from stall to stall, looking at the products that the merchants sold.
Yue Qi would occasionally gaze at the girl"s face, feeling that it was a shame that her parents weren"t here to see their daughter grow up to be such a strong woman.
He fell in love with her laugh, her smile, her perseverance, just her everything. She wasn"t as feminine like how the other women were, she was just..herself and Yue Qi liked that she just did what she wanted.
Mei"er caught Yue Qi staring and he blushed when she looked at him, making her laugh lightly as she brushed the loose strands of hair out of her face. "Come with me, let"s go somewhere fun."
Mei"er took a hold of his hand and led him over to a place that had a lake with a bridge and empty pavilion. Standing in the pavilion, she felt arms go around her waist and someone rest their chin on her shoulder. Smiling, she gazed over the water and said, "The days where we just stay together like this quietly are my happiest days."
Yue Qi smiled and kissed her cheek, "The days where we can be together are my happiest days. Just seeing you smile at me makes me happy."
Holding each other like that, the young couple watched as the sun set in the distance.