The hotel room is quiet after the chaos of the airport and the drive through the city. I lean against the bathroom counter, staring at my reflection in the mirror. The fluorescent lights harshly illuminate the slight pallor of my skin, the tightness around my eyes that I've been trying to hide from Jiangheng all day.

Another wave of nausea hits, and I grip the edge of the counter, forcing myself to breathe through it. This isn't just travel exhaustion or airport anxiety. These symptoms have been building for days—subtle at first, easy to dismiss, but now impossible to ignore.

The sound of Jiangheng's voice from the other room makes me jump slightly. "Peien? You okay in there? You've been in there a while."

I splash cold water on my face, trying to compose myself before answering. "Fine! Just... freshening up after the flight."

When I open the door, he's leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, that playful smile on his face that usually makes my heart lift. But today, his eyes are sharp with concern beneath the teasing expression.

"Freshening up or hiding?" He steps closer, reaching out to brush a strand of hair from my forehead. "You've been quiet since we landed. And you barely touched your food on the plane."

I turn my face away slightly, pretending to adjust the towel around my waist. "Just tired. It was a long flight, and all the fans at the airport..."

"Hmm." He doesn't sound convinced. His hand lingers on my arm, his thumb brushing gently against my skin. "You know you can tell me if something's wrong, right? Whatever it is."

I meet his eyes then, and see nothing but genuine concern staring back at me. The words I've been choking back all day threaten to spill out. How do I tell him? How do I even bring up the possibility that his throwaway joke about me being pregnant might actually be true?