Chapter 1
At 10:25 p.m., Dr. Shen Jiahui practically dragged her feet toward her bed. The shift at her gynecology clinic had been an absolute nightmare—back-to-back consultations, emergency deliveries, and zero breathing room. After a hastily microwave-warmed dinner and a few minutes of mindless television, her eyelids grew impossibly heavy. She swallowed her prescribed sleeping pill with a gulp of water and finally collapsed into the sheets.
The next morning, Jiahui drifted back to consciousness feeling unusually well-rested. It had been years since she last experienced such deep, unbroken sleep.
She opened her eyes lazily, only to feel a warm, heavy arm wrapped firmly around her waist.
Her heart hit her ribs like a sledgehammer. Jiahui bolted upright in pure panic.
“What the—?!” she gasped, her voice cracking.
There was a man in her bed.
Disturbed by her sudden movement, the stranger stirred, letting out a low, raspy groan. “Good morning, baby... Did you sleep well?”
Jiahui stared, completely paralyzed. The man sitting up in front of her was undeniably breathtaking—sharp jawline, soft features, and flawless skin. But as the silk sheet slid down, her eyes dropped to his midsection, and her brain completely short-circuited.
His belly was distinctly, unmistakably round. It was the shape of a full-term pregnancy.
Jiahui blinked rapidly, looking around the room. High ceilings, crystal chandeliers, grand arched windows... This wasn’t her modest apartment. This was a sprawling, opulent estate.
“Who are you? Where the hell am I?!” Jiahui demanded, her hands trembling as she backed away.
The young man blinked at her, hurt swimming in his eyes. “What? Baby, what are you talking about?”
Jiahui frantically examined herself. Her pajamas were made of expensive silk she would never buy. She scrambled out of bed and rushed toward a tall gilded mirror. The face staring back was hers, yet subtly younger, radiant, and without her usual heavy-framed reading glasses.
She spun around to face the stranger again. “Is this a prank? Is Lucy behind this? Tell her it’s not funny!”
The young man stepped out of bed, wrapping a white silk robe loosely around his frame. “Baby, please... Is it about yesterday? I know you hate public affection because you find our age gap embarrassing. I shouldn’t have grabbed your hand at the mall yesterday in front of your colleagues. I thought we already fought about this last night. I already apologized as you said you need time to get used to it... Why are you still trying to hurt me?”
Jiahui wasn’t hearing him. Panic surged through her veins as she tore through the room looking for her phone, her purse, anything recognizable. Nothing.
Determined to break out, she ran down a sweeping marble staircase and lunged for the main entrance. Locked. Secured by a high-tech biometric keypad.
“What is this?!” Jiahui whirled around, her voice sharp with desperation as the tall man reached the bottom of the stairs. “Are you holding me hostage?!”
Tears welled in the young man’s eyes. “What?! Honey, why are you doing this?”
“Listen to me, kid,” Jiahui said, forcing her voice into the calm tone she used for hysterical patients. “I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing. But if you open this door right now, I won’t call the police. Who would believe a wealthy, good-looking guy kidnapped a middle-aged doctor anyway? Just let me leave.”
“Here we go again with the same subject... age,” said the young man, tears starting to spill. “Please stop talking about this... I am begging you! And what kidnapping are you talking about?!”
“Listen to me... ok? Open the door,” Shen said in a serious tone.
Lu Feng looked at her with total confusion. “What does it mean? Ah, now I understand you... you’re trying to abandon me now? Because the due date is very soon?! You... you... No, don’t tell me you don’t want to take responsibility! But what happened?! Why do you suddenly want to leave?! Please, just explain it to me!”
Shen started yelling, “What are you saying? What nonsense are you...” She couldn’t keep a straight face and burst out laughing. “Pregnant?! Are you trying to make me laugh? Well, it’s funny... I admit it.”
It must be Lucy, she thought. She’s always insisting on sending me on blind dates... She must have come up with this crazy prank to prove something with her crazy logic!
“Funny, you say?” Lu Feng whispered. “I knew that you were trying to escape from responsibility.”
Shen kept laughing for a while, then said with a serious face, “Now, open the door.”
Lu Feng started getting closer to her, until she was blocked by the wall behind her. She was so terrified by his big and strong body—afraid he might hurt her—that she closed her eyes and held her hands up to defend herself. He grabbed her hand and put it on his belly. She was shocked, unable to move. Wait... this is a pregnant belly... wait, what?!
Lu Feng started whispering, “Can you feel her? She is kicking... Say hi to Mommy.”
Her medical mind refused to accept this. This man is insane, she thought, shaking with fear. “Look, your abdominal distension is unusual, but you don’t need a wife—you need a doctor! Preferably a psychiatrist for pseudocyesis, or a gastroenterologist to check for severe ascites or a mass! You need an ultrasound immediately!” She desperately wished that this crazy man would just let her go.
The man broke down into quiet, painful tears. “I am talking to you from my heart, and you’re just joking and saying nonsense...”
Seeing his dead-serious breakdown, a cold dread settled in the pit of Jiahui’s stomach.
It’s the pills, she thought, pressing her palms to her temples. I took a double dose of those experimental sedative pills. This is a severe auditory and visual hallucination. A lucid nightmare.
I just need to wake up. Once I go back to sleep, the hallucination will end.
Before she could step back toward the stairs, the young man said, “Please, let’s stop this lame joke... and please take a break from work... please don’t leave us,” he whispered desperately through his tears. “Don’t be this cruel. If not for me... then for the sake of our daughter...”
Jiahui went completely numb. Underneath her palm, she felt a distinct, gentle kick against her skin.
Refusing to process it, she moved like a programmed machine. She turned around without another word, walked back up the stairs, and climbed into the bed.
The man followed her quietly, sliding into the bed and wrapping his arms around her from behind, pulling her back against his chest. Jiahui didn’t resist. She closed her eyes tight, refusing to waste energy fighting a hallucination.
Just sleep, she told herself. When I wake up, I’ll be back in my own bed.
As darkness began to claim her senses once more, she heard his soft, tearful murmur right beside her ear:
“It’s okay, little one... Mommy will come around. She doesn’t hate us... She’s just tired.”
And with those words echoing in her mind, Jiahui plunged back into total blackout. Her brain, in an act of ultimate self-defense, pulled the plug on her consciousness without the need for any medication. It simply surrendered to the blackness.
