Hiss~
Bai Yao was woken up in the middle of the night by dysmenorrhea.
She had only been a girl for a few months, and recently, because of the traffic accident and her broken bone, she had completely forgotten about this matter.
Only when the pain hit did she remember that her menstruation was coming.
In the past, Qiu Ye would have reminded her, but now that she was at home, she had forgotten all about it.
Bai Yao frowned, held her stomach, and sat up.
She lifted the blanket to check the bedsheet and breathed a small sigh of relief.
At least it hadn’t leaked all over the place.
She pushed herself up from the bed, letting out low, pained whimpers as she limped over to push open the door and leave the room.
As soon as she stepped out, she saw her father still sitting on the sofa, staying up to watch TV.
Her whimpering instantly stopped.
She had been hunched over, holding her stomach, but now she quickly straightened her back, pretending to be fine as she headed to the bathroom, acting like she was just getting up to pee.
But after a few steps, Bai Yao couldn’t help bending over again.
She clutched her abdomen with one hand and used the other to support herself against the wall, sucking in a sharp breath.
After going out with her mother to buy clothes in the evening, they had eaten a huge self-serve BBQ meal and drunk a lot of cold drinks.
Now the dysmenorrhea was hitting her hard.
Her lower abdomen felt numb with pain, and the ache was even spreading to her buttocks, waist, and belly.
“What’s wrong?”
Her father noticed Bai Yao’s discomfort and got up to walk over.
“Nothing… just a stomachache…”
Bai Yao leaned against the wall, shuffled into the bathroom, and locked the door behind her.
She sat down on the toilet.
Alone in the enclosed space, she muffled her voice and let out soft, hissing breaths.
Her forehead was starting to sweat.
Taking the opportunity, she quickly sent a message to Qiu Ye:
“Got dysmenorrhea again /cry”
Bai Yao wasn’t really the type to complain.
She was more like a cat—hiding any worries or pain, swallowing them quietly without letting anyone notice.
But toward Qiu Ye, she had long let down her psychological defenses.
She was happy to show her vulnerable side in front of him.
After all, Qiu Ye never blamed her when she failed, and he never stood by coldly when she was bullied, sick, or in trouble.
“Hiss~ It hurts so much.”
Assuming Qiu Ye was already asleep at this hour, Bai Yao didn’t hold onto her phone waiting for his reply.
She struggled to stand up and opened the bathroom cabinet.
Sure enough, half a drawer of sanitary napkins sat inside.
Good thing she had noticed where her mother kept them before…
Even though back then she had no idea what they were for—she thought they were some kind of wet wipes.
She took out a pack, tore it open, and still a bit clumsily, lifted her nightgown up to her lower belly, revealing her pale, tender thighs and a slightly round little stomach.
She stuck the sanitary napkin onto her underwear, then tidied herself up again.
Okay, okay~ At least it’s not a total bloodbath everywhere.
The most embarrassing outcome had probably been avoided.
Although the pain was still severe, Bai Yao finally felt relieved.
She lingered in the bathroom for a while longer, then pushed open the door.
But she saw her father still waiting right outside, staring at her anxiously.
“Uh… I’m fine.”
“Are you sure? Want to go to the hospital and have a look?”
Her father was still worried.
“Really, I’m fine…”
Even as she said that, her father could see that Bai Yao’s face was pale.
She wanted to go back to her bedroom, but the pain made her press both hands to her stomach and lean against the doorframe, her body instinctively curling up and trembling.
“I’ll call a ride-hailing car for you.”
“No—”
Bai Yao was afraid she’d actually get taken back to the hospital because of dysmenorrhea.
She hesitated, then explained:
“It’s just… dysmenorrhea.”
“…”
Which traffic accident could change someone’s physical sex from the inside out?
Even though her father wasn’t highly educated, he knew that after the accident, the Bai Yao who had lost her QQ was only half a woman—or even a fake woman.
Seeing her father’s incredulous expression, Bai Yao’s gaze drifted guiltily toward the ceiling, and a blush of shame crept onto her cheeks.
In her eyes, menstruation was still very embarrassing.
After all, she had only been a girl for nine months.
“An-anyway… I’m really fine.”
Bai Yao finally mustered her strength, and despite the pain, she dashed back to her room in a small run.
She collapsed onto the bed and immediately curled up into a caterpillar from the pain.
Hiding under the thick winter blanket, she pressed both hands firmly against her lower abdomen, as if she could push the pain back inside.
She pushed so hard that her soft belly dented inward, but the indescribable ache kept spreading outward.
Her body trembled involuntarily.
Her breathing grew heavier, and she gritted her teeth, whimpering, afraid that her family would see this most vulnerable side of her.
In just a short while, a thin layer of sweat beaded on her forehead, and strands of hair stuck to her face.
Fortunately, her phone vibrated.
It was a reply from Qiu Ye.
Bai Yao turned her head, glancing at it from the corner of her eye.
The pain was too great for her to even pick up the phone.
“Does it hurt a lot? Woke you up in the middle of the night? Take some ibuprofen.”
“Is your aunt awake? Ask her to heat up some water and rub your belly.”
The lock screen only showed those two messages.
Bai Yao wanted to reply, to chat with Qiu Ye and get through this ordeal.
But the pain had her completely pinned under the covers.
Her body instinctively curled and trembled; she couldn’t do anything else.
“Knock, knock, knock.”
She had forgotten to lock the door when she came in, so her father easily pushed it open.
“I boiled some water.”
He placed the electric kettle on the bedside table, poured a glass of water, looked at the mound of blankets with something to say, but didn’t know how to help.
At a loss, he finally left the room.
“What the hell! It’s the middle of the night, and I have to work at eight tomorrow! Don’t you want me to sleep?”
A moment later, her mother’s irritated voice came from outside.
She was clearly annoyed at being woken up.
She was still complaining as she put on her bathrobe:
“You never give her living expenses at ordinary times. All year, you only pay for tuition and insurance. Now you’re playing the good guy…”
As she walked into her daughter’s room, her mother’s words stopped abruptly.
Her tone softened.
She yawned, closed the door behind her, and sat down at the head of the bed.
“Hmm? Yao Yao?”
“Get up and drink some hot water.”
Her mother habitually scolded Bai Yao:
“You’re about to start your period and you don’t even know? And you still ate and drank so much tonight. Aren’t you stupid?”
She had already taken Bai Yao’s medical reports to various doctors long ago, and she knew that Bai Yao was actually a normal woman.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have accepted it so quickly.
Bai Yao curled up even tighter.
The faint whimpering she had been making earlier stopped entirely.
“Hurry up and drink some hot water. I’ll spread the electric blanket for you later, and we still have an electric heating pad at home.”
Her mother urged.
When Bai Yao didn’t move, she couldn’t help but raise her voice:
“It’s already three in the morning. I have to go to work tomorrow. Don’t drag things out.”
“Oh…”
Bai Yao reluctantly sat up.
To be honest, the first few days back home had felt pretty good.
She had food and drink, no one bothered her, and although her mother nagged, her tone was calm.
But she had been home for a while now.
The initial novelty had worn off, and her mother was probably starting to get annoyed with her again.
“Do we have any ibuprofen at home?”
Bai Yao still wanted to take some medicine to ease the pain.
“Medicine is three parts poison. If you’re not sick, don’t take medicine. Just tough it out. It’s the same for everyone.”
“…Okay.”
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