After having dinner, Shui Xian washed the dishes as he said and took Raelle out to the veranda. It was decorated with fairy lights and was a perfect place to take a walk in the evening breeze.
Shui Xian held her hand and took a walk, matching each of her footsteps. Breathing in the fresh air, he felt refreshed. His heart was really filled to the brim tonight with excitement that he couldn't even express in mere words. He lifted up their interlaced hands and dropped a kiss on the back of her hand with a satisfied smile on his lips.
After doing so, he continued to rub her fingers and played like a little kid.
Raelle silently allowed him to do whatever he wanted. She didn't pull back her hand and neither did she stop him from smiling like a fool. Her attention was actually all set on him.
"You seem a little..." Raelle was trying to find the right word.
"Excited?" Shui Xian suggested.
Raelle gave him a nod, "That's right. Excited. You seem a little excited."
"That's because I am really excited," Shui Xian honestly let her know. "I feel like this moment is really good. It's peaceful."
Raelle leaned on the wooden banister at the side as she looked at the lake right in front of her. She gazed at Shui Xian and said, "Aren't you tired?"
"Not at all," answered Shui Xian. "I am so energetic today that I feel like I can use this energy to run 100 laps or so." He was telling the truth. Lately, when he came back from work and opened the door of the cold and empty hotel room, he'd feel drained out. But today, he was rather feeling high!
He really felt like he could run 100 laps without any difficulty. Even if he cooked after coming back, he was still as energetic as ever. His energy reserve was walking by his side. How could he feel drained out today?
Just the thought that he wasn't alone was enough to charge him up.
Shui Xian swung their intertwined hands like a kid happily as he pointed at the lake saying, "Doesn't it look like there is a door that might lead you to the moon?"
With the sky reflecting perfectly on the lake's surface, it really looked like the moon was within one's reach. Although it was so far away, one actually felt like if one touched the reflection of the moon he might be able to touch the moon.
"But there isn't a door," said Raelle. "At most, you can try to reach the moon's reflection but you won't even be able to touch that either." Raelle's words were as rational and logical as ever.
"Hey, but one can always deceive oneself, no?" Shui Xian gave her a pampering look. He wasn't fazed by her words. So, what if she ruined the whole magical moment? If she didn't speak facts, she won't be the Raelle who crushed the defenses of his heart.
"But for how long?" she asked seriously. "How long do you think you can keep up the deception?"
Shui Xian touched her cheek with his fingertips lightly, "Some people can keep up the deception for a lifetime, sweetheart. There are so many marriages that are merely based on business prospects. And there are plenty who have deceived the world with a smile and looking like a happy couple. How many do you think are really happy?"
Raelle looked into his eyes and said, "Hubby, you might be able to deceive the world for a lifetime. Can you do it yourself? Can you really deceive yourself for that long? Whenever you're alone, your loneliness will keep reminding you of what you are."
Shui Xian's lips upturned a bit as he told her, "I was ready to deceive myself when I had decided to marry you. I thought if I am not able to love you, at least, I'll be able to deceive you."
"Oh?"
Shui Xian heaved a long and heavy sigh, "But it seems it was just joking with myself. I could have never been able to deceive you."
He felt her tightening her grasp on his hand and was surprised when he looked into her eyes. "I was wondering, why do you believe in love so much? Why do I think your whole life had been circling around love?"
Shui Xian bit his lip as he looked around. He couldn't avoid this question. And he couldn't escape her eyes for certain. She could see everything.
"Perhaps, because I've been influenced by my mother," he told her. "She was a lovely woman who was hopelessly in love. And the way she talked about love to me made me believe in love wholeheartedly." His mind wandered off to the memories of his mother as he continued, "I don't know when it started but just like her, I became a believer of love. I didn't realize it until it was too late and I honestly didn't think there was anything wrong with it either. It's because of her that even till this day, I still have a strong faith in the thing called love."
He smiled gently at her as he went on, "Even if it hurts. Even if it's painful. Even if it's tiring. Even if the road is long. I still believe in it." He kissed the corner of her mouth as he added, "And with you standing here, holding my hand, my belief is only getting stronger."
"You've always been close to your mother," she commented.
"I was really close to her. I told you about it," he said. "The way she used to tell me bedtime stories, I even came to believe there was a magical realm which I just couldn't see."
"Who would believe in those stories?"
"Yes, I was the idiot who did. But in my defense, I was a kid whose world was small but rich with imaginations." He lowered his voice and told her, "Don't tell anyone but I once even imagined the moon fairy came to see me. It's a secret between us. Don't say a word to others."
At his own silliness, he started laughing since his wife didn't really react much even after hearing his embarrassing secret. But it was actually a relief that she didn't laugh at him.
Raelle tugged at his hand that she held and with a jerk, his head leaned down. Taking advantage of this position, Raelle placed her lips close to his ear and spoke in a low voice, "I suddenly think my husband has been quite cute in his childhood." She pressed her lips against his ears making them instantly turn red.
First, it was her hot breath hitting his sensitive spot. Second, her voice was too low that seemed unhealthy for his heart. Third, the words she spoke made him feel shy. And lastly, she just blew his mind with that soft kiss on his sensitive ear.
It really wasn't his fault that he turned red like a tomato.
Shui Xian gave her a spin with their hands still interlocked with each other and she ended up pressed her back against his chest once again. And their interlaced hands rested on her stomach. He bit her earlobe from behind and said, "But not so cute anymore. So, don't tease me."
"Okay," she agreed readily.
"Did your mo..." Shui Xian bit his tongue and rephrased his question, "I mean did Yanyan tell you bedtime stories?"
"What do you think?" Instead of answering him, Raelle asked her own question.
"Hmmm..." Shui Xian hummed as he thought about this question seriously. "I believe since my wife has always been special. She must not have listened to bedtime stories like a kid."
Raelle shook her head, "You're wrong."
"Huh?" Shui Xian was dumbfounded. "You actually listened to bedtime stories? Why is it so hard to believe?"
"Not stories, just a story," she told him. "Yanyan only read 'The little Prince' by Antoine De Saint-Exupéry to me. Until the age of six, she repeatedly read this story to me. Only this one."
"Only 'The Little Prince'?" He inquired in surprise.
"Yes, only this one," she answered. "Do you know why she read it to me repeatedly?"
"Why?"
"Yanyan said she wanted me to understand 'The Little Prince' she didn't just want to tell a story to me. She wanted me to understand its essence. And what it was trying to really say."
"You must have really gotten it then," he asked.
"Not really," She told him. "It took me a long time to do so. Even if you ask me today, there are certain aspects I won't be able to explain well. But I can read out the story word for word."
"Reading it and knowing its meaning are two different things," said Shui Xian. "I don't think parents tell this story to such young kids. It's a story that even adults can relate to. It's too meaningful to kids to understand."
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