The boy's family left soon after. Judging by the kid's tear-streaked face, he was probably scared out of his wits. His father paid all the fees up front as a way of apology. Shen Qingzhou didn't stop him; from his perspective, the family had gotten off extremely easily.
Yu Wan and Shen Qingzhou were the only ones left waiting by the surgery room.
"Why aren't you going back?"
Yu Wan sat down on a chair. "I'm waiting for it to come out."
Her voice was incredibly raspy. Shen Qingzhou gazed at her for a few seconds. He had never comforted anyone before, nor had he ever believed in the gesture. But the sight of Yu Wan's pitiful state miraculously made him think otherwise.
Shen Qingzhou thought for a moment, then reached out to pat Yu Wan's head gently. "This wasn't your fault. You don't have to be like this."
Yu Wan tilted her head upwards to look at him. Because she was focusing purely on Red Bean, she had completely overlooked Shen Qingzhou's rather intimate gesture. "I'm worried about Red Bean."
Shen Qingzhou fell silent. He had always spoiled Red Bean, and it was the first time it had come to the vet's in such a serious condition. When he heard about Red Bean's incident, his heart throbbed like never before; however, he calmed down like usual. What went on in his mind never showed on his face. "It should be fine. Yu Wan, don't worry."
A few minutes later, the doors of the surgery room swung open. Shen Qingzhou and Yu Wan stood up at the same time and walked over with Yu Diandian hot on their heels.
"How is it?" Yu Wan asked hurriedly.
"It's not a big deal. Though the wound is long, it's not very deep. I've already given it stitches, so it should be fine with a good amount of rest." The doctor stated.
Yu Wan and Shen Qingzhou both heaved a sigh of relief.
"Miss, please don't worry. Look at all the blood on your clothes– you should hurry home and change, eh? Is this your boyfriend? Just have him stay here." The vet was a fifty year old man, so he didn't seem to recognize Shen Qingzhou.
Yu Wan shook her head, "He's the owner of the dog, not me..."
"Oh, young man, your girlfriend is quite kind to have such concern for your dog. You have no idea how frightening it was to see her small frame carrying such a large dog."
Shen Qingzhou glanced at her and could immediately imagine the scene. No wonder there was so much blood on her back and shoulders.
Yu Wan laughed dryly and didn't want to explain to the vet. She peered inside the room, "Can I take a look inside?"
"Sure, but I've administered some anesthesia. It should be asleep by now."
Yu Wan nodded and walked in. She stood by Red Bean's side and saw that a patch of its beautiful white fur was shaved off for stitches. A feeling of sorrow welled up inside of her. Now, an ugly scar was going to ruin Red Bean's beautiful fur.
She unconsciously glanced at Shen Qingzhou. His brows were furrowed, and the hurt was clear in his eyes. Shen Qingzhou obviously adored Red Bean, and the sight of its injury must've carved itself deeply in his heart.
"We shaved off a bit of its fur while stitching the wound, but don't worry. The scar won't be noticeable at all when it heals, and the Samoyed's thick fur will completely cover it when it grows back. It'll be practically invisible." The vet quickly explained when he saw Yu Wan's expression.
"Doctor, what else do we need to look out for?" Shen Qingzhou asked.
"Just don't have it move much in the next few days. As for food, don't feed it anything that's hard to digest. Bring it back later to disinfect the wound and apply new bandages."
"Sure." Shen Qingzhou looked at Yu Wan. "It's late, you should go home first with Yu Diandian."
"But Red Bean..."
"I'll take it home when it wakes up."
"... Oh."
Shen Qingzhou saw Yu Wan's saddened expression and said, "Let's go buy kibbles tomorrow. Something easily digestible."
Yu Wan's eyes glimmered. "Then I'll come visit tomorrow."
"Mm."
Yu Wan and Yu Diandian left. Everything that had happened today seemed like a blur, and she still felt a bit dizzy from the whole thing. But to her surprise, Shen Qingzhou, as uncaring and hot-tempered as he usually was, didn't criticize her at all. He didn't lecture her, not for a single word...
Yu Wan slumped on her sofa after taking a long shower. In her mind, Shen Qingzhou's every move was being replayed again and again. Suddenly, Yu Wan shot up to her feet. She finally felt a bit more awake and remembered, did Shen Qingzhou wipe away her tears at the hospital?
Shen Qingzhou, who despised the presence of every human in a million-mile radius, actually wiped away her tears for her?
The next day, Yu Wan went to the supermarket and bought kibbles super early in the morning. Normally, she would go to 702 at night, but Yu Wan knocked on its door at noon.
Shen Qingzhou opened the door. He wore a simple white T-shirt and gray casual shorts. His hair looked like it was just washed, and a few damp strands of hair still clung to his skin. He looked much gentler than usual.
Shen Qingzhou looked at Yu Wan and didn't say anything. He immediately turned around and walked away.
Yu Wan took off her shoes at the door and put on the light blue flip flops that she kept at his house.
"Red Bean."
Red Bean was sprawled in his little bed and didn't look very energetic.
Yu Wan crouched down to pat its head. "Does it still hurt? I'm sorry, it's all my fault that I didn't protect you. Please don't be mad at me."
Red Bean playfully booped her palm with his nose, and Yu Wan broke out into a smile. "Here, I bought some new food for you. You can't eat what I fed you before because you're sick, so I'm going to heat these up so it gets soft."
"It's not really tasty, but you'll get better faster this way. Bear through it, will ya?"
Yu Wan kept talking nonstop to Red Bean by herself. Shen Qingzhou came out of the bathroom after blow drying his hair and saw the two. Red Bean looked quite amused at her chatting with it, and his brows raised a little. Had he been talking less with Red Bean lately?
Yu Wan picked up the kibbles and stood up. She saw Shen Qingzhou standing quietly in the living room as she turned around. She paused and said, "It's according to what the vet said. I soaked and heated Red Bean's food."
"Just put it there. You can come back later tonight." Shen Qingzhou retracted his gaze and sat down on a sofa.
"I'm caring for Red Bean exclusively for free, not you. So there's no pressure. I won't be collecting pay for this." Yu Wan raised an eyebrow and mumbled, "I'll be satisfied once Red Bean's healed."
As she spoke, Yu Wan walked into the kitchen.
Exclusively for Red Bean? Not you? Shen Qingzhou's face darkened. Since when did he say that he wanted a helping?
When Red Bean finished eating, Yu Wan went home to work. She arrived at Shen Qingzhou's door in the evening without fail and prepared grub for the two barking customers in 702. When Shen Qingzhou finished eating, he put his dishes into Yu Wan's dishwasher and prepared to take Red Bean to the hospital for disinfection.
"I'm going, too?" Yu Wan was about to leave when she heard that Shen Qingzhou wanted her to come along.
"Yes, you'll be useful." Shen Qingzhou replied stoically.
"Then, can I bring Yu Diandian along?"
"If you want to."
The four rode the elevator down to the underground parking lot. This was the first time Yu Wan rode in Shen Qingzhou's car. She wasn't a car fanatic, but she could easily tell that the vehicle was of luxury class. It didn't have many accessories inside, but it did have the aroma of car freshener.
Yu Wan sat at the back with the other two, holding Red Bean close so it wouldn't bump into anything. The trip to the vet wasn't very long, but Yu Wan still started to peek at Shen Qingzhou out of boredom.
She could only see the side of his face from her perspective, but it didn't stop her from her admiration.
"Mr. Shen, have you raised any other dogs before?"
"Red Bean is the first one."
"Oh, no wonder."
What did she mean, no wonder? Shen Qingzhou glanced at her through the rear-view mirror. The girl in the back had one hand propped against the door and the other against her chin. A pair of glistening eyes stared attentively in his direction.
"The temperature in your house is too low. That's bad for your dog. And, from what I can tell about your personality... I can guess that you don't talk much with Red Bean."
"...."
"Just keep your air-conditioner in mind. As for communication, it's alright if you don't like to talk. I'm here, anyways."
Shen Qingzhou's eyes narrowed and glanced at Yu Wan again. In the mirror, a smile was lit on the girl's pale and exquisite face....
Shen Qingzhou realized that Yu Wan was nice to look at. He didn't feel repelled by her strange words, either. The lack of repulsion was indeed rare for Shen Qingzhou.
He pulled back his gaze. "As long as Red Bean's happy."
"Of course it is. I'm really passionate in raising dogs." Yu Wan patted the pet sprawled on her leg. "Isn't that right, Red Bean."
Red Bean, "...."
When they arrived, Yu Wan prepared to carry Red Bean out of habit. But just as she lowered her arms, a hand stretched out nearby. "I'll do it."
Yu Wan turned to look at him. Shen Qingzhou had already put on a facemask. It was sizeable, and only exposed his smoky eyes and pale forehead. Yu Wan suddenly remembered that Shen Qingzhou was supposed to be a public figure. It was fortunate that there weren't a lot of people last night at the hospital when he arrived in a hurry.
But today was the weekend, so it would naturally be a lot more crowded. Shen Qingzhou probably didn't want trouble, so he had made plans beforehand.
Shen QIngzhou carried Red Bean and let its head rest on his shoulder. Yu Wan and Yu Diandian followed closely behind, and they walked to the hospital's front gate.
They found the doctor from yesterday. He quickly started to change Red Bean's bandages.
"Young man, are you a celebrity or something? Apologies, but I'm a bit old. I can't seem to remember a lot of the new ones." The doctor said as he cleaned the wound. "When you two left last night, the nurses were all riled up. They said you were... Shen Qingzhou, eh. What films have you acted in? I'll make sure to watch some later."
Shen Qingzhou, "I'm not an actor."
"No? Then, are you a singer?"
Shen Qingzhou, "...."
Yu Wan chuckled nearby. "Doc, he's a director."
"A director? Isn't it a waste for someone with your looks to be behind the scenes? If you go in front, you'll definitely be popular." The doctor sighed.
Yu Wan followed up. "Yeah, you can clearly make a living off of your looks, but you're dead set on using your brains."
Shen Qingzhou looked at her in exasperation.
When the doctor finished, he turned to Shen Qingzhou. "Your girlfriend is quite cute. You two seem really suitable for each other."
Yu Wan waved her hand. "Nah, I'm not his girlfriend."
The doctor was surprised, but then seemed to realize something. "Oh~ I know, I know. Celebrities have to hide every little thing when they fall in love. Okay, I won't say anything. If others hear me blather, it'll all be exposed."
Yu Wan couldn't say anything. The geezer's thoughts were quite creative.
Then, she turned to Shen Qingzhou. His eyes were nonchalant, neither confirming nor denying. Yu Wan pursed her lips. He probably didn't even want to bother with stuff like this.
"Come with me for the medicine," The doctor said.
Shen Qingzhou turned to Yu Wan. "Go, it's best for me not to."
Yu Wan nodded. So she was useful, after all.
Shen Qingzhou watched as Yu Wan walked out the door. The doctor's words resurfaced in his mind.
Girlfriend? Each other? Suitable.....