Yuqin and Lingling spent a day outside and shopped for necessary items. Lingling got some baby clothes and other items in case something do happen. Yuqin only bought some personal items that she needed. She also bought a few maternity clothing and some looser outfits. She bought a new slipper as her old ones needed to be thrown away. Lingling navigated the shopping cart while Yuqin placed the items into it.
After coming out of the mall, they stopped by a bubble tea shop. Yuqin treated Lingling since she helped out a lot.
"Sister Yuqin, what are you going to drink?" She asked looking through the menu.
"I get slight nausea from milk tea so I'll get a regular hot tea." Yuqin smiled and placed the menu back. All of a sudden, the smell made her nauseated again. She took a pill and drank some water.
"Sister Yuqin, how about we go outside and wait? Is the smell making you sick again?" Lingling got up and grabbed their belonging. Yuqin slowly got up and sat on the bench outside while waiting for Lingling to get their order. She was feeling much better since the smell faded. Lingling came out and gave Yuqin her hot tea while she drank her peach mango bubble tea.
"Lingling, sorry about that. I thought the nausea will be over but I didn't know it came back. Don't worry about it. It's getting less and less compared to last month or so. How about we head back, I'll give a few things to your parents." Lingling didn't complain at all, she was satisfied with the bubble tea. She helped Yuqin getting the stuff into the trunk while Yuqin started the car.
"Sister Yuqin, thank you for the bubble tea. I'm sorry that you have nausea. Having a baby is difficult, right?" Lingling looked down but Yuqin slightly smiled and replied, "It certainly is difficult but it's also a blessing. You will understand soon." As Yuqin started to drive, she looked outside and thought about many things that happened to her. And the people that helped her and loved her despite her shortcomings.
"Lingling."
"Yes?"
"There's a small envelope in my purse. It's not much but it's a late new year's gift for you. Also there will be a note from your brother as well. Don't show the note to your parents but only give them the note if something happened to him. For the money, you can either save it for emergency or spend it on things you enjoy. I'll also send you some emergency contact information in case something happens." Lingling opened her purse and got out the envelope.
It contained three thousand five hundred yuan (~493 USD).
"Sister Yuqin, this is a lot to accept. I'll save it for now since I didn't even finish spending my allowance yet. Thank you. But what I really want is to have you and my brother come back home safely."
Yuqin nodded, "I understand. Your brother and I will try our best."
As Yuqin parked the car outside Han Rong's apartment, she hugged Lingling one more time.
"I'll miss you. Take care and call them if an emergency happens." Lingling nodded and hugged back tightly without letting Yuqin go.
After a while, Lingling got her shopping bags while Yuqin placed the gifts for her mother and father-in-law into one of the shopping bags.
"Lingling. Thank you so much. I'll be sure to message you whenever I have internet connection." Lingling waved and Yuqin smiled back.
On her way back, she went to the beach again and sat in one of the benches, "Goodbye, Sanya. I'll come back, for sure."
***
On Monday morning before she left Sanya, she went the doctor to get her prescription and finished her check up. Henry picked her up after waiting outside. He was worried about Yuqin's condition but he was relieved that everything went smoothly during the check up.
"Are you ready to go?" Henry asked her. Yuqin got her things and said, "Let's go." As they drove to the airport, Yuqin dozed off to take a rest. Henry turned down the A/C and concentrated on driving. When they arrived to the airport after half an hour, Yuqin slowly got out of the car while Henry got her luggage.
"Yuqin, take care and see you soon!" Henry waved goodbye as he headed to work. She walked into the airport and waited at the security line. Just then, someone tapped on her shoulders. It was Officer Max with Officer Ling followed closely behind him. Yuqin was surprised to see them because she thought they followed Han Rong.
"You didn't expect to see us, right? Albert went before us since we got some work to catch up. Why are you here? I don't remember boss telling you to find him." Officer Max scratched his head.
"Oh, I got a call from my instructor and our water rescue team got dispatched so I'm on my way over there. I remembered Han Rong is around that region, right?" Yuqin asked them and they nodded.
"I don't know if we'll see him. We're actually meeting up with Albert to the military base. I don't think we're going to the same direction. Did your instructor say anything about who will pick you up?" Officer Ling asked.
"One of my friends from the academy will meet me at the Bashariq airport." Yuqin unknowingly touched her abdomen. Max and Ling looked at her, shocked.
"D-Did you and boss.. uh.. do that?" Max asked. Yuqin blushed, "Two months."
Max and Ling smiled.
"Sister-In-Law, if you need anything. Call us. But, take care of yourself first." Officer Max smiled at her as she got through the security gate. Max and Ling followed behind her. They were glad that Yuqin and Han Rong got together.
"Hey, Max. Should we tell Boss that we saw her?" Ling asked.
"You want to distract Boss?? " Max replied while Ling shook his head.
After Yuqin found an empty seat near the gate, Officer Max and Officer Ling sat beside her. Both of them took out their laptop and started to work.
"What are you working on?" She asked as she took a bite of her snack.
"We're helping Boss, that's all you need to know." They smiled at her while Yuqin nodded and looked away, "I'll be back, I'll be going to the restroom."
"No problem, we'll watch over your stuff."
***
As they got on the plane, Yuqin sat in the aisle seat while Max and Ling sat in front of her. She tightened her seatbelt then rested on the headrest. She closed her eyes and rest a bit. Just then, a flight attendant tapped on her shoulder.
"Miss? Miss?" Yuqin woke up and looked at her.
"Please turn off your phone, thank you." Yuqin nodded and immediately turned it off. As the plane started to rise, she closed her eyes again and slept. After a few hours, she woke up and feeling a bit dizzy. A young woman was sitting beside her and she looked at Yuqin, "Do you need any help?"
Yuqin smiled and shook her head, "I'll be better in a few minutes, low blood pressure."
"Are you pregnant?" The young lady asked. Yuqin nodded, "Two months."
"I made some ginger candy. I eat these when I get motion sickness." The young lady shared some and placed them inside a see-through ziploc bag.
"It's hard being a mother, right? I hope your baby will be safely delivered. I lost mine a year ago." The young woman smiled at her.
"Thank you and I'm sorry for your loss." Yuqin replied and took a piece of the ginger candy.
"No worries. My husband and I aren't in a rush for another. Is your husband at fighting in a war?" She asked Yuqin.
"No. My fiance is a SWAT officer and he's rescuing hostages in Bashariq. He's not a soldier. How about your husband?"
"He's a soldier but recently he got transferred to a hospital because of his injuries. I'm visiting him. How about you?" She asked.
"I'm part of the Red Cross Water Rescue Team. Our team got dispatched so I'm meeting up with them." Yuqin replied and the young woman was amazed.
"I admire your strength. You're also pregnant and I do wish you the best! I really do pray that your baby will be safe including you. Bashariq isn't a safe place, you need to be careful." The young woman looked at Yuqin again and smiled.
"Thank you. What's your name? Sorry I didn't ask you earlier." Yuqin asked.
"Maha. I'm a graphic designer. I graduated two years ago. And you?" Maha asked.
"Yuqin. I'm a lifeguard before becoming a water rescue specialist for the Red Cross." Yuqin replied and both of them shook hands. They became friends pretty quickly.