The World Ends In 27 Days

Hanchuan looked at the hand Zhiyi had left open between them.

He had been ready to tell her she needed to stay here until Qinghe said otherwise. Instead, he glanced around the medical room, trying to separate what she needed from what made him feel safer.

He knew this room now. He knew the sounds of the equipment and where to stand so Qinghe could reach her. Even the chair had become familiar, uncomfortable as it was.

None of that explained why she couldn’t sleep down the corridor.

"The bed adjusts," Hanchuan said, finally taking her hand. "Qinghe can get to you from both sides, and everything he needs is here."

"Our bed has space on both sides," Zhiyi replied. "Ask him what we would need to bring."

Hanchuan brushed his thumb across her palm. She wasn’t asking him to stop caring for her. She wanted him to consider whether they could do it somewhere else.

"I’ll ask him," Hanchuan agreed.

He found Qinghe in the kitchen with a bowl in front of him. His friend looked up and put down his spoon before Hanchuan reached the table.

"She’s all right," Hanchuan said. "She wants to sleep in our room."

Qinghe’s shoulders eased. He glanced toward the corridor, then back at his bowl.

"Let me check on her first," Qinghe replied. "Then I’ll look at the room."

Hanchuan stepped aside to let him pass. He had several concerns ready, but he kept them to himself as they walked back. Zhiyi could tell Qinghe what she wanted without him explaining it for her.

Qinghe pulled his stool beside the bed.

"Hanchuan says you’d like to move," Qinghe said. "What’s bothering you most about being here?"

"My husband sleeps over there," Zhiyi answered, looking toward the folding bed. "I want him beside me."

Hanchuan followed her gaze. His pillow still lay where he had left it that morning, the blanket pushed toward the foot.

Qinghe nodded and turned back to her.

"Let me see how you’re doing," Qinghe said. "Then we’ll work out whether we can make you comfortable in your room."

Zhiyi answered his questions and let him examine her, although she began watching the doorway before he finished. When Qinghe stopped to write something down, she reached toward Hanchuan.

He came closer and gave her his hand.

Afterward, he took Qinghe down the corridor.

Their bedroom felt too quiet when Hanchuan opened the door. He switched on the bedside lamp and saw Zhiyi’s slippers beside the bed, one half-hidden beneath it.

He bent to pull it out and set the pair together.

He had come in for clean clothes, but never stayed longer than necessary. The empty bed was harder to look at than he wanted to admit. They had chosen things for this room expecting to use them together, and lately he had barely been able to imagine bringing her back.

Qinghe walked around the bed while Hanchuan straightened. He checked the space beside it, then looked at the bedside table.

"We’ll need to clear this," Qinghe said. "But I can bring her things in here. I’ll still come and check on her during the night."

Hanchuan rested his hand against the table. "You’re sure we can move her?"

"We’ll take our time," Qinghe replied. "If she needs us to stop, we stop."

Hanchuan nodded, then glanced at his side of the bed. "And I can sleep here with her?" he asked.

Qinghe looked at the space before answering.

"Yes," Qinghe said. "We’ll get her comfortable first. Give her room, and be careful of her ribs and ankle."

Hanchuan began moving things off the table while Qinghe was still looking around.

The others helped without making much of it.

Zeyu carried what Qinghe needed from the medical room, and Shichen found extra pillows. When Hanchuan returned with a fresh blanket, Jingwei was moving a small cabinet away from the doorway.

"Better there?" Jingwei asked, setting it against the wall.

Hanchuan nodded his thanks and went back for Zhiyi.

Helping her move took longer than clearing the room. He listened closely to Qinghe, careful about where he put his hands and how much support she needed. When her fingers tightened against him, he looked at her face.

"Wait," Zhiyi said.

Hanchuan stopped at once. She kept her eyes on his while she took a few careful breaths.

"Give me a moment," Zhiyi told him. "Then we can finish."

He held still until she nodded. This time, he followed her lead without asking the same question again.

Once she was in their bed, Qinghe adjusted the pillows and helped her settle. Hanchuan stood nearby with another pillow tucked beneath his arm, waiting for something he could do.

Zhiyi noticed it.

"That one’s yours," Zhiyi reminded him. "Put it on your side."

He looked down, then placed it where she had told him. When he turned back, Zeyu was arranging the wooden box and her notes on the bedside table.

"Anything else you want brought over?" Zeyu asked.

"My hairbrush," Zhiyi said. "It should be in the top drawer."

Hanchuan was already reaching for the drawer by the time Zeyu turned toward it. His friend smiled faintly and left him to it.

Qinghe stayed until Zhiyi said the discomfort was easing. He made sure everything was within reach, reminded them to call if they needed him, and left the door partly open behind him.

Hanchuan washed and changed out of his dusty clothes. When he came back, Zhiyi was looking at the bedside table.

"Move the glass farther back," Zhiyi requested. "I’ll knock it over when I reach for the box."

He moved it and laid her hairbrush beside it, then sat on his side of the bed. For a moment, he looked at the space she had left for him.

"You can lie down," Zhiyi told him.

Hanchuan stretched out carefully. He had left more room between them than he needed to, and she reached across to catch his sleeve.

He moved closer, turning toward her. A few loose strands of hair lay against her cheek, and he brushed them aside. She looked tired now that the move was over.

"Are you comfortable?" Hanchuan asked.

"My ankle aches," Zhiyi replied softly. "But the pillows are fine."

He glanced toward her supported leg, then back at her. Nothing needed adjusting just because he wanted something to fix.

Zhiyi slid her hand down his sleeve until she found his fingers.

"I want you here when I wake up," Zhiyi said.

"I’ll be here," Hanchuan promised.

He leaned closer to kiss her. She held his hand against the pillow, keeping him near until she was ready to let him go.

Afterward, she settled back with a quiet breath. Hanchuan reached toward the lamp, but stopped when she spoke again.

"The soldiers thought they could take me because I was unconscious," Zhiyi said. "Did they think you made all my decisions before that, too?"

Hanchuan lowered his hand. She was watching him now, more awake than she had been a moment earlier.

"Tomorrow," Zhiyi continued, "I want to hear the recording of that call."