In the middle of the night Yichen lay in bed watching Mochou sleep. He slipped his hand under the quilt and placed it on Mochou's stomach.
It was completely flat. There was no baby bump or stirring beneath the surface. Nothing to indicate a baby was growing inside Mochou's abdomen. Even so Yichen couldn't pull his hand away.
He slowly lowered himself under the quilt until he was curled up at the foot of the bed. His face was now resting across from Mochou's stomach. He felt incredibly cramped with his knees pressed against his chest but the smile never left his face.
"Little Grape, grow big. Grow big and strong. Daddy will make sure your mama eats well and is careful. In exchange you have to be nice to your mama. No making him sick." Yichen said as he rubbed Mochou's stomach.
"Not mama. I don't wanna be called mama." Mochou whispered back.
!!
Not expecting Mochou to wake up Yichen froze.
"Yichen, I don't wanna be called mama. I'm not a woman." Mochou reiterated for him.
"What do you want to be called?" Yichen finally asked as he slipped back up to look at Mochou.
"I don't know. I just don't want to be called mama. It's too feminine."
"I think GERs are sometimes called fumu or bama instead of mama. Do you want to use one of these?" Yichen suggested.
"Fumu? I think that sounds okay. Yeah." Mochou said as he lightly touched his stomach. Yichen also liked the sound of fumu. He placed his hand on top of Mochou's hand.
"You hear that Little Grape? Call is daddy and fumu." Yichen said. He then leaned in close to give Mochou a light kiss.
"Fumu, we love you." Yichen added before giving him another kiss.
"The Little Grape can call me fumu, not you. You are my husband. Call me by my name." Mochou said. He wasn't ready to only be known as a parent.
"Okay, my wonderful spouse Mochou." Yichen said before leaning in again to kiss him. Mochou enjoyed the kiss and was sad when it ended. He grabbed Yichen's shirt collar and pulled him close again asking for another kiss.
Their lips pressed up against each other again softly. They weren't deep and passionate but quiet and sensual. The kind of kisses that warm the body from the very soul.
Yichen didn't rush to deepen the kiss. He brought Mochou closer into his gentle embrace. The two hugged each other close as they gently kissed.
Yichen raised his hand and swept Mochou's hair back gently to reveal more of his face. He then wandered from the soft tempting lips to Mochou's blushing cheeks. With one kiss Mochou's cheeks became redder. He then kissed him again and again until the once light pink cheeks became a deep red.
Satisfied Yichen moved to Mochou's tired eyes. When he kissed the edge of his eyes Yichen could feel the long eyelashes sweep across his lips. Yichen found the feeling ticklish but Mochou seemed to dislike it. He turned his head away avoiding the next kiss to his eye and instead letting Yichen kiss his temple.
A little dejected by the avoidance Yichen set his sights on Mochou's cute upturned nose. He kissed the very tip of the nose. After he did Mochou scrunched his nose. Finding it cute Yichen leaned in again to kiss the bridge of his nose. From the bridge he worked up to Mochou's brow then his forehead.
Kissing it Yichen could feel the scaring from Mochou's cut that had been healing since their wedding.
"It's a little rough but it's healing well." Yichen thought as he kissed it once more.
No longer satisfied Yichen moved in for a deeper kiss hoping to spark a more passionate response.
Zzz
"He fell asleep?!!" Yichen noticed Mochou's eyes shut tight and a light snoring sound escaping his lips. While he was warming into a boil Mochou was staying at a comfortable simmer until he went cold and fell asleep.
"What happened to our passion? We are a newly married couple. We should be breaking the bed not sleeping in it." Yichen complained as he turned onto his back in misery.
...
When morning finally came Yichen turned over to wake Mochou. He debated on letting him sleep in but after what happened earlier in the night Yichen no longer hesitated and lightly tapped Mochou's shoulder to wake him.
"Five more minutes." Mochou grumble.
"I want to go into town with my brothers on the mule. You need to wake up or we'll miss the chance." Yichen explained as he pulled away the quilt.
"Let me sleep. I want to sleep." Mochou said while trying to steal back the quilt.
"No. Let's go shopping." Yichen said.
He grabbed the quilt and completely pulled it away and out of reach. He then walked over to the wardrobe and pulled out a change of clothes for Mochou and himself.
Mochou grumbled as he slowly sat up. With sleepy eyes he yawned and looked at Yichen who had already started to change.
"What happened to getting more rest and taking it easy?" Mochou said.
"Rest is important but it's also important to keep healthy habits."
Yichen thought up a legitimate reason to hide his pettiness. Mochou seemed satisfied and grabbed his clothes so he could change. Seeing him obediently getting dressed Yichen felt a little guilty for what he did.
"Do we have time for breakfast?"
"We do, but there aren't any eggs. It will take another couple weeks before our chickens start laying them. Today we need to buy enough eggs to last until we have a chance to buy more. We should also buy some pork and another old hen. I also want to stop by the doctor's clinic for more herbs and ginger..."
Yichen started listing all the things he planned to buy in town. At first it was food and medicinal herbs but then he started mentioning quilts and clothing.
"We don't have the room for any unnecessary clothes or quilts. I also don't need them considering how early it is. Let's wait until the house is built and we have the extra room to store everything." Mochou said.
"Now that you mention it we should go to the carpenter and talk to him about building furniture for the house. I know we decided to wait but we have to consider a baby room so I think we should start discussing and having things built now." Yichen said.
"We talked about taking things slow yesterday. You agreed we could wait before telling anyone about the pregnancy." Mochou said.
"We don't have to tell anyone about the pregnancy to get furniture made." Yichen said.
"They'll know when we ask for a crib to be built."
"We can say it's being made in preparation for the future."
"There is a difference between not saying anything and lying. I don't want to lie about it." Mochou said. Then regretting how adamant he was about keeping things secret he apologized.
"I'm sorry if I'm being unreasonable."
"You don't have to apologize. I'm the one who is rushing things. You're right that we don't have to start having the furniture made today. I'm excited and can't help but want to do everything now. I'll try to take things slower." Yichen said.
"I'm glad you're feeling excited. I need you to be excited because I'm scared." Mochou said.
"I'll be excited enough for both of us." Yichen said while he knelt down to start the stove. Watching him getting the stove ready Michou felt a twinge in his heart.
"You woke me up early saying we need to hurry now you plan to start a fire?" Mochou said a bit spiteful.
"You can be angry but you need to eat something for breakfast." Yichen said unaffected by Mochou's spiteful remark. Ashamed of his earlier attitude Mochou got out of bed to help.
"I made a few buns at lunch yesterday. They are in the bamboo basket." He said. He then grabbed the pot and placed it on the stove.
The two of them quickly made some sweet steam buns for breakfast. Yichen used the boiling water from the pot to make tea.
"What's this?" Mochou asked as he looked at the tea Yichen handed him.
"It's made with dried goji berries and ginger. Drink it. It's nourishing and tastes delicious." Yichen explained as he pushed it closer.
"I don't remember us buying goji berries."
"I had dried ones in my medical kit. It's not much so I'll have to buy more in town today." Yichen said.
Mochou was starting to worry. Yichen kept adding more and more to their shopping list. Each item would cost money and although he didn't know the price of each one he did know it wouldn't be cheap once added all up.
"Yichen, we need to start thinking about money. I planned to hunt but with the pregnancy that's not possible. I know we have your savings but it won't last long if we continue to spend it like we've been doing. I'm worried."
"Once the house is built I will start working for the doctor and making money."
"Will it be difficult?"
"I only plan to work here in the village as his apprentice. It won't be difficult or busy." Yichen said. Mochou seemed satisfied with Yichen's answer but Yichen kept thinking of the problem long after he stopped talking.
"Maybe I can talk to my dad about working for him. I could also ask Mochou to teach me how to set the traps and do the hunting in his place while he stays at home." Yichen mused while he was outside washing the dishes.
He was glad to ease Mochou's worries however what he neglected to mention was how much he would be paid. It wasn't much because he would be an apprentice. In fact he had no idea how much he would be paid. He could only hope it would be enough to ease Mochou's worries.
When he married Mochou, Yichen was confident he could support him. However as more time passed he was beginning to realize things weren't as simple as he assumed.
In the past he never worried about money. Traveling with his uncle he never had to spend the money he earned helping his uncle. He also never worried about the cost of things because his family was well off and there wasn't anything he needed to buy.
Now, listening to Mochou's worries he began to realize how naive he really was.
"If I pick me own herbs and prepare medicinal teas or packets for people to buy I can make money. We also have the garden in the yard and the chickens. Once those start producing food our expenses will be a lot less." Yichen quietly considered all the ways he could make money and reduce their expenses while preparing to leave for town
"I am a man, a husband, and a father. I will support my family and give them everything they need or want." Yichen swore to himself before going back inside to check if Mochou was ready to leave.
...
Mochou and Yichen made it in time to join his brothers. The brothers were five with letting them use the mule cart. However, when Mochou looked at the mule cart he felt a bit uneasy. He grabbed Yichen's sleeve to get his attention.
"Is something wrong?" Yichen asked.
Mochou signalled for him to bend down. Yichen was a bit confused but bent down to listen anyway. Mochou raised his hand to Yichen's ear and quietly whispered.
"Is it safe for me to ride that considering my condition?" Mochou asked.
"I know the ride is rough but there shouldn't be any problems." Yichen whispered back.
"Are you sure?"
"If you start to feel uncomfortable we can get off and I'll carry you." Yichen suggested. Mochou looked at Yichen, then the cart again still apprehensive and nervous about the rough ride.
"Yichen, I think I'll stay home." Mochou decided.
"Are you sure?"
Yichen could understand his concern and before Mochou answered his question he spoke again.
"In that case you could stay here with mom." Yichen suggested.
"I prefer to go home. The house is safer now that we have the tall thick walls and a new gate." Mochou said.
"Okay. I will be home before lunch. If anything happens you can ask my parents for help. Also please be careful and don't do anything you shouldn't while I'm gone." Yichen said.
"You should also be careful, stay safe, and don't go crazy buying things." Mochou said.
"Don't worry I'll only buy things that are necessary." Yichen promised.
"Yichen, we're ready to go." Yi Nao said.
"I'm coming." He shouted before turning back to say goodbye to Mochou.
"I'll be back soon." He said. Then on impulse he gave Mochou a light peck on the cheek.
"Not in public!" Mochou rebuked.
"Hahaha!"
Yichen laughed at the blushing Mochou. He found it cute how shy he was in public. Happy and reassured he walked over to the cart and explained to his brothers that Mochou wouldn't be going with them.
"Is everything okay?"
"Yes, he's just a little tired." Yichen explained.
"If you want to stay with him we can buy what you need and drop them off tonight." Yi Ming offered.
"It's fine. Now that the walls are finished our little hut is a lot safer. He'll be fine. Let's go." Yichen said.
His brothers were fine with Yichen's decision. So they climbed aboard the mule cart and the three of them left for town.
...