Wang Zichen barely flinched as the pillow hit his back and dropped to the floor. His sharp gaze shifted from Azalea to Chen Yiran, who was now glaring at him with barely restrained fury.
Chen Yiran glared at him, "Are you serious?" she snapped, "You dare wake her up! Do you know how hard it is for me to sleep?"
Wang Zichen's jaw tightened, "I didn't wake her up."
"Right." Chen Yiran scoffed.
Wang Zichen sighed not knowing why he was even explaining which he never did to anyone, but this Chen Yiran was so scary, "She was already awake when I came in."
"Of course, she was. She's a baby, not a damn AI system."
Azalea's cries grew louder and Wang Zichen took an instinctive step back, as if the sheer volume alone was enough to repel him.
Chen Yiran groaned, forcing herself to walk. She reached out for Azalea, her irritation momentarily replaced by concern as she cradled the baby against her chest, "SHH, it's okay," she whispered, rocking gently. Her cries softened, little hiccups replacing her wails.
Wang Zichen watched, feeling oddly useless. His gaze softened, just a fraction, as he observed Chen Yiran's ease with their daughter. It was strange. He was supposed to be the composed one, the one always in control, yet standing there, he felt like a complete outsider in his own family.
Chen Yiran, however wasn't going to let his presence slide so easily.
"Why are you even here?" she muttered, keeping her voice low not to startle Azalea, "I thought you were busy with work."
Wang Zichen's expression remained unreadable, "I came to see her."
Azalea had finally calmed down, her tiny fingers gripping Chen Yiran's nightgown as she settled against her chest. Chen Yiran exhaled softly, rubbing small circles on Azalea's back before glancing at Wang Zichen.
He was still standing near there, his face unreadable, his posture stiff.
Since he was here, she might as well use the opportunity than wait till morning.
"Carry her," Chen Yiran said, her voice firm but quiet.
Wang Zichen's gaze flickered to her, "Why?"
"I want to go back to the bedroom. You're here so carry Azalea while I walk back there. I can't walk properly holding her."
She then extended Azalea toward him.
Something flickered in his eyes before he said, "I don't know how,"
Chen Yiran froze for a second, Then she let out a laugh, "It's not hard. You just hold her gently."
He exhaled sharply before carefully, very awkwardly, taking Azalea into his arms. She let out a soft coo. His movements were very stiff, as if he was handling a fragile bomb that could explode any second.
Aza blinked up at him.
Wang Zichen stared back.
"Don't just stand there like a mannequin. She's not an explosive device, Master Wang. Walk."
Chen Yiran pushed herself up from the bed, sucking in a breath as pain shot through her body. She clenched her jaw and started walking, each step slow and heavy.
The walk to the bedroom wasn't so agonizing as she expected, It was bearable. She wasn't fully healed and every movement reminded her of that. Meanwhile, Wang Zichen followed behind, his body rigid as he held Azalea.
Chen Yiran glanced at him. He looked unnatural, like someone who had never held a baby before. His grip was careful but awkward, his arms visibly tense.
Aza kept staring at him.
Wang Zichen kept avoiding her eyes.
It was unnerving.
Chen Yiran bit back a smile.
Wang Zichen kept expecting Azalea to break into another fit of wails, but she didn't. Instead, she just studied him, as if silently judging his existence.
By the time they reached the bedroom, Wang Zichen felt like he had run a marathon. Chen Yiran, on the other hand, was barely holding herself together.
"I need to use the bathroom," She muttered, heading straight inside.
Wang Zichen stood there, still holding Azalea, waiting for her to come back.
Five minutes passed.
Then ten.
Fifteen.
Wang Zichen's patience was already thin, but by the twentieth minute, he was convinced this was Chen Yiran's form of revenge.
"What is she doing in there?" he muttered under his breath, afraid of shifting Aza or even moving.
Just as he was about to call out to her, the bathroom door finally opened.
Chen Yiran stepped out, her damp hair falling over her shoulder with a bathrobe tied.
"You were bathing?" Wang Zichen stared at her.
She got inside her walk in closet, "I needed it." She then emerged in, a fresh change of clothes hugged her frame, and she looked far more refreshed.
"You took forty minutes!"
"I deserved a proper bath," she smirked slightly, walking towards the bed, "Why? Did you miss me?"
Wang Zichen scowled, "No."
Chen Yiran sat on the bed, stretching slightly, when suddenly, Wang Zichen shoved Azalea into her arms.
Well, not shoved, but he handed the baby over so fast that Chen Yiran barely had time to react.
"Take her," he muttered, as if she were a molten lava burning him.
Chen Yiran looked down at Azalea, who was resting comfortably against her, then back at Wang Zichen, who was already backing away like he had survived a battlefield.
"Wow! You lasted longer than I expected. You looked liked you were enjoying yourself."
Wang Zichen shot her a look, 'You weren't the one being judged by a one-day old'
He exhaled deeply as he said, "I am leaving." and with that, he turned on his heel and walked out of the room.
Chen Yiran watched him go, then glanced down at Azalea. The baby was already dozing off. She smiled to herself, leaning back against the pillows.
Chen Yiran was woken up by a light shake on her shoulder.
"Miss Chen, Miss Mo is here to see you," Jessica said.
Chen Yiran barely reacted at first. Then she registered the name. Mo? Right. Mo Yeji. She t glanced at Azalea who was still asleep, her tiny chest rising and falling steadily.
"Stay with Aza," Chen Yiran muttered as she helped herself up.
Instead of walking to the lounge, she took the lift down. Then she saw her, Mo Yeji was seated, legs crossed, a delicate white dress draped over her frame. The dress was clearly meant to give off an angelic, innocent look, but somehow, on Mo Yeji it did the opposite.
"Yiran! I missed you." Mo Yeji called out with a sweet voice that made her cringe.
Chen Yiran sat down, eyeing her with mild curiosity.
Mo Yeji offered a bright smile, "Where's the baby?"
"Sleeping," Chen Yiran answered shortly.
Mo Yeji's fingers tapped lightly against her knee, "I should go see her."
Chen Yiran raised a brow, "Why?"
"I just want to see her, of course," with a soft laugh.
"She's asleep."
Mo Yeji's pressed her lips together, then switched gears, "Was Wang Zichen there for the birth?" Her tone casual, but Scarlett caught the hidden anticipation underneath.
Chen Yiran held back a smirk, "Yeah, he was."
Mo Yeji blinked, "Really?"
"Left this morning actually," Chen Yiran added.
Mo Yeji faltered for a second before she recovered, offering a small smile, "Oh. Well, that's... nice."
Chen Yiran didn't respond, watching as Mo Yeji adjusted her posture, her fingers now fidgeting slightly.
Then perked up again, "Did you delete all your socials?"
"Yeah," she answered.
"Why?" Mo Yeji's voice hyped up before she toned it down, "I mean, your fans are waiting for the video and also you know I don't have a lot of followers and you are my best friend so I noticed yo were not following me."
"Oh?" Chen Yiran tilted her head.
Mo Yeji's smile twitched, "So... when are you going to upload it?"
Chen Yiran let out a quiet breath through her nose. 'Was this the kind of person Chen Yiran surrounded herself with?'
"I'm not."
Mo Yeji blinked, "You're... not?"
Chen Yiran's voice was firm, "No."
Mo Yeji let out a small awkward laugh, "Come on, don't be like that. Your fans..."
"I don't care. I'm going to live a private life"
Mo Yeji's mouth parted slightly, like she was struggling to process that answer. Then she quickly adjusted, offering a smaller sweeter smile. "Okay... but if not the video, at least post a picture of your daughter."
Chen Yiran just looked at her.
"Why do you keep insisting I post Azalea? What do you want?"