Akira was exhausted.

She had been on the edge since Hu Lei told her that Kaito was coming back. She was anxious for the first few days as she waited for his arrival. However, a week had passed, and there was no sign of the man. Furthermore, Hu Lei and Zhong Feng also did not know when Kaito would come back.

After long days of anxiety, she was exhausted.

On Thursday evening, she got an early meal from the kitchen and went to sleep. She did not have the strength or spirit to wait for supper with Zhong Feng and Hu Lei. Usually, the two people had their meals late in the night.

Since the birth of Xiao Bao, they would have their supper even later. Hu Lei had told her that she liked eating with Zhong Feng, and he sometimes came back late. So, she had gotten used to having supper instead of an earlier dinner.

And with Xiao Bao, the couple would spend about half an hour to an hour before bedtime with the baby. Then, they would have their evening meal.

Akira did not like disrupting their family time, but she would have supper with them on most days. It was a bittersweet time for her because she did not know if she would have such blissful moments in the future. Sometimes, she found their affectionate displays annoying.

On that evening, she did not say anything before going to her room to sleep. Hu Lei was playing with Xiao Bao, and Zhong Feng was not back from some important meeting. Therefore, no one noticed Akira's poor mood when she went to sleep.

Unfortunately, sleeping did not make everything better. Instead, she was plagued by nightmares that overlapped into something of a horror movie. In one moment, she was dressed in white, waiting for Kaito on their wedding day.

Then, the scene changed into one of blood.

She saw it clearly as if it was happening right before her. As she stood in front of the church as a happy bride, some thugs wearing ogre masks rushed towards her with an intent to kill her. She wanted to fight back. She knew she could beat them without much of a struggle.

However, her body could not move. She was like a doll stuck to the ground. She was useless in a crisis and could only cry at that moment. She watched as the thugs walked towards her with crude weapons, ready to extinguish her life.

Just as they were about to kill her, Kaito appeared before her and covered her with his arms. And a sword penetrated his chest. His eyes were dark but clear as he looked at her. Blood poured from his lips, and the gaping wound was horrifying.

Suddenly, she could move. But it was already too late. Kaito was dead. She cried and shouted and screamed at the world, unable to accept the situation. She tried to press her hands to the wound and prevent blood loss.

But it was futile.

Then, the scene changed into a post-apocalyptic wasteland. She was alone and pregnant. The sky was covered in a dark smog, and she could hear garbled roars from the zombies following her. Unfortunately, she could not hold on anymore.

However, if she stopped and had the baby, both she and the little one would become fodder for the zombies. She pressed on and ignored the pain, struggling to move forward and survive. But she still collapsed with a cry of pain.

She fell to her knees, helpless. The zombies hiding in the shadows walked towards her with outstretched arms ready to devour her and Little Precious. She was helpless to defend herself, and the pain of labour made it impossible to even keep her eyes open.

In her bedroom, a tired man looked at the sleeping figure. His eyes were glued to the pale face with cold sweat covering the forehead. He reached a hand and touched the once rosy cheeks. His heart ached for the young woman.

He brushed the long hair from her face and looked closer at her in the dim light of the moon.

"No, stop. No, no, no." The woman mumbled in her sleep.

"It is alright. It is just me." The man whispered.

Akira did not seem to hear the voice as she tried to fight off the zombies. Just as she thought she would be eaten, she woke up with a start. When her consciousness returned, she noticed the presence of another person in the room.

Her hypervigilance caused her to react before thinking. She folded her hand into a fist and swung at the intruder. If it were not for Kaito's fast reflexes, his nose might have been broken. Fortunately, he was quick and caught the small hand in his.

"Are you trying to murder your husband?" He asked.

Akira, who was trying to free her hand, looked at the intruder. She blinked stupidly at the person. It looked like Kaito. But that was impossible. Kaito was gone. She must be still dreaming. Moisture formed in her eyes.

Kaito panicked as she saw tears pouring from Akira's eyes.

"Why are you crying? Am I too ugly now?" He asked with his usual sense of humour.

Akira cried a little harder because the dream or illusion was a little too realistic. She could not bear it.

"Baby, I am sorry. I am so sorry." Kaito said as he wiped the tears with his thumb. "I should have found a way back to you sooner. No, I should not have been careless to be taken from you. Please stop crying. I promise I will not leave again."

Kaito cajoled and comforted Akira with all kinds of promises and endearments. But the more he said, the more she cried. It was like she was made of water. In the end, Kaito could only sit beside her on the bed helplessly.

"Kaito? Is it really you?" Akira finally stopped crying and asked with a hiccup.

"It is me," Kaito said.

"Really?" She asked.

"Yes."

Akira's eyes watered again.

"Help me up." She finally said.

"What?"

"Help me sit up." She said with a pout.

Kaito was confused for a moment, but his eyes drifted to the large bump under the duvet. He thought it was the bed coverings forming a small hill or Akira had folded her body. However, after the request, he knew that it was not so simple.

His Akira was pregnant.

Without realising it, he started hyperventilating.