One-way Access

Xia Wennan was a Beta, and according to his memories, he was still in his second year of university. He hadn’t even turned twenty yet. And yet despite all that, his memory truly was a bit hazy. Things that happened yesterday didn’t feel like they’d happened yesterday, but rather some time in the distant past. There was a lapse in his memory, but what had happened in that time for him to wake up in a hospital room with a male Alpha who claimed to be his husband?

His head remained in a muddled state. After Ming Luchuan left, Xia Wennan took a nap, and when he woke up again, the room had slightly dimmed, while the world beyond the window had gone dark.

There were people at his bedside; a young female nurse who was adjusting his IV and one other person—Lin Shuqiu. Bent at the waist, he was pressing a stethoscope against Xia Wennan’s chest. When Xia Wennan’s eyes slowly opened, a trace of awkwardness graced his face.

Xia Wennan said, “Lin Shuqiu.”

Lin Shuqiu gave a nod, retracted his stethoscope, and straightened up. 

The female nurse wheeled the cart away. Before leaving, she said, “Doctor Lin, I’ll be leaving first.” 

Lin Shuqiu nodded, not moving an inch away from Xia Wennan’s bedside. 

Once they were the only two people left in the room, Xia Wennan asked, “Are you really Lin Shuqiu?”

“Of course I am.”

Lin Shuqiu was Xia Wennan’s high school classmate. Like Xia Wennan, he was a Beta.

Despite having been in the same class in high school, their interactions were few and far between. In Xia Wennan’s impression, Lin Shuqiu was a skinny and delicate introverted boy. Back then, he wore glasses and sat in the front row, always quietly listening to the teacher with his head up. He’d never been able to look anyone in the eye. 

The current Lin Shuqiu—though he was as skinny and delicate as before—no longer wore glasses and seemed to have stopped avoiding people’s gazes. He also possessed an adult’s composure.

Lin Shuqiu was standing at his bedside, a stethoscope hanging out of the pocket of his white coat. “You’re suffering from amnesia as a result of traumatic brain injury,” he explained to Xia Wennan. 

Xia Wennan had already guessed as much. “Will I be able to recover my memories?” he asked. 

“It’s possible.”

“How did I get hurt?” Xia Wennan had had a lot of questions to ask that afternoon, but the middle-aged doctor hadn’t provided him with any answers. 

At present, they were the only ones in the room; Lin Shuqiu no longer evaded Xia Wennan and said, “You got into a car accident.”

Xia Wennan lifted a hand, wanting to touch his head, but Lin Shuqiu reached out to stop him.

“It’s like I’ve been unconscious for ages.”

“You were unconscious for three days.”

“Three days…” Xia Wennan was somewhat taken aback. “There’s so much I don’t remember. It feels like I’ve aged a lot, too.”

Lin Shuqiu thought for a bit. “You said that you’re in your second year of university this year. Then that would mean… you’ve lost nearly six years worth of memories.”

“Six years?” Xia Wennan’s eyes widened. 

“We’re the same age, if I recall correctly, which means that you’re already twenty-six this year.”

Xia Wennan tried to digest this information. He recalled Ming Luchuan and said, “That Alpha… This afternoon, he…”

“Mr. Ming?” Lin Shuqiu said. “Ah, you don’t remember him either—he’s your husband.”

Yet again, Xia Wennan had to take in this unpleasant piece of news, and yet he remained unconvinced. “Why would I marry a male Alpha?”

“Huh?” Lin Shuqiu obviously had no answer to this, and his bewilderment was plain on his face. “I don’t know.”

A nurse came by and knocked on the door, telling Lin Shuqiu that a patient was looking for a doctor.  

“I’m still on duty. I’ll come talk to you again when I have time,” Lin Shuqiu promised Xia Wennan hastily, and with that, he followed the nurse out. 

The room faded into a soft darkness. Xia Wennan closed his eyes, and as he lay in bed remembering that Ming Luchuan fellow, he tossed and turned with restlessness, thinking that things couldn’t possibly be so simple. 

Ming Luchuan was a no-show next morning. A nurse pushed a wheelchair into his room and took Xia Wennan for an examination.

Xia Wennan was still very weak and needed help getting down from the bed, but the state of his body was a little better than it was yesterday. 

Before leaving, Xia Wennan wanted to go to the bathroom. The nurse supported him to the door and initially thought to help him inside as well, but he firmly refused.

The bathroom was dimly lit. Xia Wennan had to use the mobility aids to keep his balance. He clung to the metal handrails and stood in front of the mirror, staring at the reflection of a familiar yet unfamiliar young Beta. His face was the same, but his hair was long, his figure slim, and his skin was even a shade paler than he remembered. Because of his injuries, he appeared somewhat frail. More importantly, Xia Wennan could see how the lines of his face had changed. It was just as Lin Shuqiu had told him the other day. The him in the mirror no longer bore the appearance of a university student, but rather a twenty-six year old young man. 

He had inexplicably lost six years of his life… and inexplicably gained an Alpha husband. 

Xia Wennan had two medical examinations that morning and was absent-minded throughout. After the nurse wheeled him back to his room, he lay on the bed listlessly, dazed gaze fixed on the snow white ceiling. 

Come noon, when a hospital worker came by to deliver his meal, Ming Luchuan came too. 

Ming Luchuan was dressed in a dark grey suit. He wore no tie, and the collar of his shirt was wide open in a not particularly tidy way.

As he entered the room, Xia Wennan looked up and saw no trace of emotion on his icy face. 

Ming Luchuan hadn’t said anything since walking through the door. He went straight to the bed and pressed the button that adjusted the angle of Xia Wennan’s bed.

Xia Wennan sat propped against the bed, and watched as Ming Luchuan sat down and opened the lunchbox that had just been delivered by the hospital worker.

That’s my food… Xia Wennan thought, yet not a word left his mouth. 

Ming Luchuan picked up the spoon, his gaze falling on the lunchbox. Xia Wennan had been in a coma for several days, and his current diet consisted of watery congee, vegetables, and meat that had been cooked soft. Ming Luchuan scooped a spoonful of congee, propped it on the side of the lunchbox to leave it to cool, then brought it to Xia Wennan’s mouth.

Stunned, Xia Wennan asked, “Eh? You’re feeding me?” 

In lieu of responding, Ming Luchuan simply shoved the spoonful of congee into his open mouth.

Caught off guard, Xia Wennan could only choke down the food in his mouth. Suddenly irritated, he said, “Are you feeding a pig?”

This time, Ming Luchuan cast a glance at him, and said, “That’s right.”

Xia Wennan choked, but before he could spout the words on the tip of his tongue, Ming Luchuan had already brought another spoonful of congee to his lips. Without any better option, he opened his mouth and wrapped his lips around the spoon. In this way, Ming Luchuan fed him spoonful after spoonful of congee until Xia Wennan finished his lunch. Afterwards, he grabbed the other lunchbox and sat down on the sofa to eat.

Xia Wennan stayed where he was. He couldn’t help himself from staring at Ming Luchuan. When Ming Luchuan raised his head, Xia Wennan averted his gaze, pretending to ignore him.

Once Ming Luchuan had finished eating and tidied up the lunchboxes in front of him, Xia Wennan asked, “Are we really married?”

Ming Luchuan looked up at him, his expression unfathomably cold. 

Xia Wennan felt a little uneasy. “How long have we been married?” Xia Wennan tried again. 

“Half a year,” Ming Luchuan said coldly.

Xia Wennan was filled with doubt, but when he made eye contact with Ming Luchuan, he was hesitant to voice his questions. In the end, he asked a question that was relatively unrelated to his current situation. “Where does my grandpa live now?”

This time, Ming Luchuan didn’t respond right away. After a brief pause, he said, “He’s already passed away.”