Kaew woke up to a familiar, traitorous ache twisting in her lower stomach, and the first thought that crossed her mind was a curse. Then another, louder one as she realized the spreading warmth in her underwear.

..damn it.

“Fucking great,” she muttered under her breath, dragging a hand down her face and slamming it against the mattress in frustration. Her sheets—well, their sheets—hadn’t been spared. “Of course. Why not ruin the bed too, huh? What’s next? A power outage? Earthquake? Someone knocking on the door to offer me unsolicited opinions about my career?”

stupid fucking uterus.

She sat up gingerly, already regretting the movement as another wave of cramps seized her. Her muscles tensed. Her toes curled. It wasn’t just pain—it was betrayal. Her own body had decided to sabotage her right before a scheduled outdoor shoot with the new brand clients, and now she had to send a pathetic message to her boss at Ovurgn Méll, asking for the day off.

Kaew hated asking for anything.

She was used to running on caffeine and salt, to working through discomfort with a sarcastic quip and a cigarette break. She wasn’t delicate. Delicate people didn’t spend their teenage years wrestling printers the size of washing machines at Phammy’s, her mother barking orders while toner dusted her jeans and customers asked if “Kaew” was short for something exotic.

But this... this was next level. Her abdomen felt like it was being twisted by some demonic hand cranking a rusted wrench. Every shift in position sent a new stab of pain up her spine.

fuck you, Eve. hope you’re proud of women today.

“Just kill me,” she groaned, flopping sideways on the mattress. “Actually. No. Then she would have to deal with my funeral, and she already has enough on her plate.”

Her eyes drifted to the closed bathroom door. She had gotten up earlier, graceful and quiet as always. Like a cat. No thudding footsteps, no clumsy stumbles. She was probably brushing her hair, or doing her skincare routine with that absurdly calm face that made Kaew simultaneously love and resent her. Kaew looked like a half-dead goblin in the mornings. She looked like she’d stepped out of a music video.

she’s too soft.

And yet, that softness never grated on Kaew. Not the way she thought it might when they first moved in together. She was always the rough one, the blunt one, the “you’ve got something in your teeth” one. But she never tried to smooth her out. She just... was, and Kaew found herself relaxing around her more than she did anyone else.

Not that she’d say that out loud. Gross.

A soft knock interrupted her train of thought. The bathroom door creaked open and she stepped out, wrapped in a robe, and Kaew immediately noticed the slight wince in her step.

Oh no.

“You too?” she asked, eyes narrowing with suspicion.