After quickly settling the hospital fees, Lin Yang was on his way back to the ward when he received a call from Wang Chao.
Since rushing to the hospital yesterday without attending the graduation photo session, Lin Yang hadn't reached out to him. Taking care of the babies kept him too busy to even check his phone, where he saw two missed calls from Wang Chao. The guy must have been frantic.
"Yang-ge, where the hell did you disappear to?!" Wang Chao's anxious voice burst through the phone.
"You skipped the graduation photos, ignored my calls—don't tell me you went to meet some online girlfriend?"
"Man, don't get scammed! Online dating is so unreliable these days. Seriously, you're good-looking and all—how could you think this was a good idea?!"
Wang Chao rambled on for a while, speaking so fast that Lin Yang couldn't get a word in. Only when Wang Chao finally ran out of breath did Lin Yang seize the chance to respond.
"I'm at the hospital," Lin Yang said plainly.
This single sentence set Wang Chao off again.
"What the hell?! Yang-ge, you didn't get mugged for your kidneys, did you? How did you end up in the hospital so fast? Which hospital are you in? Send me the address—I'll come take care of you!"
Hearing Wang Chao's worried tone, Lin Yang chuckled. "I'm at Sacred Heart Hospital. Come if you want."
Knowing Wang Chao wouldn't stop worrying if he refused, Lin Yang decided to let him visit. They had been genuine friends throughout their four years of university. Now that he had kids, Lin Yang didn't plan on hiding the truth.
After sharing the hospital name, he returned to the ward.
Inside, Shu Mengyao sat up straight, her eyes fixed expectantly on the door. She let out a sigh of relief when Lin Yang came in.
"Yaoyao, my roommate Wang Chao will come by to see the babies later. Since I've decided to walk this journey with you, I want everyone to know about you. Are you okay with that?" Lin Yang asked gently, sitting beside her.
He understood her social anxiety and knew she might be nervous about the meeting, but there were some things that needed to be faced. He wanted her to take this step confidently.
"Alright, I'll listen to you," Shu Mengyao replied softly. Although meeting someone made her nervous, the thought that Lin Yang wanted to introduce her to everyone felt sweet, like a piece of candy.
Not long after, Wang Chao arrived at Sacred Heart Hospital, climbed up to the fourth floor, and found Ward 12.
"Yang-ge, did you get hurt? Why are you even in a maternity hospital? And man, the way the doctors looked at me when I came in…" Wang Chao muttered as he pushed open the door, stopping mid-sentence when he looked inside.
He froze at the sight of Shu Mengyao on the hospital bed, Lin Yang sitting beside her, and a baby stroller holding two babies.
"I must be hallucinating," Wang Chao muttered. He stepped out of the room, closed the door, and walked back in, only to see the same scene.
"Damn, am I opening the door wrong?" He repeated the process a third time, earning laughs from both Lin Yang and Shu Mengyao.
"Stop it already! Everything you're seeing is real," Lin Yang finally said, unable to hold back his laughter. He had a feeling Wang Chao would have kept repeating the action endlessly if he hadn't spoken up.
"What the f***?!" Wang Chao exclaimed.
"Yang-ge, weren't you talking about some online girlfriend? How the hell are you involved with the campus belle?! And what's with the two babies?!"
"Oh, right. My online girlfriend is Shu Mengyao. Also, these are our kids," Lin Yang said casually.
His nonchalant tone left Wang Chao flabbergasted.
"You ditched the graduation photo session, and it was actually because of her?!" Wang Chao slapped his forehead, recalling Lin Yang's parting words. So he hadn't been joking.
Damn it! They had just graduated, and here he was with no girlfriend while Lin Yang had secretly gotten together with the campus belle and even become a dad.
"What are you daydreaming about?" Lin Yang teased, noticing Wang Chao's contemplative expression.
"Yang-ge, I was just wondering how life can be so unfair," Wang Chao sighed. "We're both fresh graduates, but you're already a father!"
He looked at Lin Yang holding Shu Mengyao's hand and couldn't help but marvel.
"If the guys back at school saw this, they'd probably tear you apart."
"Let them. Who cares?" Lin Yang replied with a wave of his hand.
After calming Shu Mengyao, Wang Chao eagerly asked, "Can I see the babies? I've never seen newborns before!"
"Of course. They're twins—a boy named Lin Yunhe and a girl named Lin Xingluo," Lin Yang said, his face lighting up with pride as he introduced them.
Seeing Lin Yang's radiant expression, Wang Chao felt like his roommate of four years had suddenly transformed into a mature man. Meanwhile, he still felt like the same old nobody.
"Man, these babies are tiny," Wang Chao exclaimed, peeking at them curiously. "Newborns are even smaller than I thought. They're adorable and so quiet, not even crying or fussing!"
After a while, Wang Chao took out a wad of cash and handed it to Lin Yang.
"What are you doing?" Lin Yang asked, trying to return it, but Wang Chao refused.
"Yang-ge, we just graduated and don't even have jobs yet. Raising kids won't be easy for you. If you ever need help, just ask your brothers. This isn't much, but you have to take it," Wang Chao said, unusually serious.
Lin Yang hesitated, knowing Wang Chao probably wasn't well-off himself. Judging by the amount, it was at least 1,000 or 2,000 yuan, likely his entire food budget for the month.