Chapter 208: A Mother’s Worry
An Han walked beside her mother, looking a bit tense. Her black low-waist jeans showed off her shapely lower body, while the white hoodie on top covered most of her upper figure.
Even so, she still felt a little uneasy, wearing girls’ clothes in front of her family always gave her a strange mix of shame and nervousness.
The mindset of her former male self hadn’t completely faded away yet. It still lingered somewhere deep inside her, always surfacing whenever she hung out with her roommates or male friends in her usual boyish clothes.
It really felt like she had two personalities, and she didn’t even know whether the “boyish her” in front of classmates or the “girlish her” in front of Su Peng was the real mask she wore.
“Mom, why is brother’s butt so round and perky~?”
And to make it worse, her clueless little sister always managed to say the most evil things that hit her most embarrassing spots.
“She even wiggles her hips when she walks!”
An Han froze in place, her face turning bright red. She took a deep breath and tried to calm down, changing her walk to the loose, careless way she used to walk before.
But it didn’t help at all. Her body shape was completely different now. No matter how roughly she walked, her hips still swayed naturally with each step.
Unable to change that, she smacked her sister lightly on the back of the head.
“Mom! Brother hit me!”
“Call her sister,” her mother said gently, turning around with a soft smile. “Stop making trouble.”
“Oh…”
Her mischievous sister kept bouncing around as they walked, while An Han held tightly onto her hand, afraid she might get lost in the busy night market.
Tonight, their mother had especially brought An Han out to buy clothes, and to stroll through the lively market near the school.
“Hey, want milk tea?” An Han asked.
“Yes!” her sister replied eagerly.
An Han led her toward a milk tea shop. While her sister was choosing her drink, she turned back to ask, “Mom, do you want one?”
“I’ll pass. You two shouldn’t drink too much of that stuff,” her mother said.
At that moment, when her mother turned her face away, An Han clearly saw the trace of worry on her expression.
Her mother only showed such gentle and understanding looks when she was with her daughters…
Pretending not to notice, An Han looked down and urged her sister, “Hurry up, it’s just milk tea, don’t take forever choosing.”
“Then… this one! Strawberry cream!”
While waiting for the drinks to be made, An Han left her sister at the counter and quietly walked back to her mother’s side.
She still couldn’t quite believe how open-minded her mother had been about everything. After a long silence, she finally asked softly, “What about our relatives… what will we tell them?”
“I’ll take care of it,” her mother said with a calm smile.
Her mother looked at her face, pretty, but somehow unfamiliar, and sighed lightly.
“Since you’ve become a girl, you have to get used to it. Think carefully about what kind of future you want. You can’t just drift along like before.”
“……” An Han only nodded silently.
“Have you thought about getting married someday?”
The question startled her.
“No! Of course not!” she said quickly, shaking her head.
After the strong denial, she lowered her eyes and mumbled, “That depends on you…”
“Why are you looking at me?” Her mother’s gentle tone faded, leaving behind only worry. “If you were still a boy, I wouldn’t worry so much. But now…”
“Let’s not talk about that. I’m only twenty,” An Han said, clearly unwilling to think about the future.
She hadn’t even fully adjusted to her identity as a woman. There was no room in her mind for anything else yet.
“Big sister! Milk tea!”
Her little sister came running back, holding two cups. “Sister! I want to try yours too!”
“Sure,” An Han said, poking the straw into her cup. She watched her sister take a sip first, then took the drink back, not even caring that they had just shared the same straw.
“It’s this hot outside, and you’re still drinking something cold?”
“It’s fine.”
“You’ll see if it’s fine when your stomach starts hurting.”
Hearing that, An Han looked unusually proud. “That won’t happen!”
What she once thought was the most useless system reward had now become her license to eat and drink whatever she wanted. She had her period today, but she could eat and drink anything without worrying about cramps at all.
“Oh right, dad…” An Han suddenly remembered her father.
“Should we tell him?” she asked hesitantly. “He’s probably coming back for New Year, right?”
Her father had been working abroad for years and only came home once every year or two. As the only “son,” he had always spoiled her. Even though they rarely saw each other, he’d been giving her extra allowance since middle school. Now, he was the one paying for her college living expenses too.
Her relationship with her father was pretty good, probably because she’d been “bribed” with money. But her parents’ relationship wasn’t that great.
“He… You should be the one to tell him. Or maybe let your uncle say something first,” her mother said.
An Han hesitated. “Maybe it’s better to keep it a secret for now.”
“Has he called you recently? What did he say?”
“He usually calls once every week or two,” An Han reported honestly. “He just asks if I need money, how my studies are going, and how my sister’s grades are.”
Her mother nodded slightly, then gave her a strange look, which immediately made An Han nervous.
“What is it?”
“That boy, Su Peng,” her mother said, watching her carefully. “Do you like him?”
An Han shook her head so fast it almost became a blur, her face bright red. “No! Of course not!”
“He probably likes you, though.”
She shook her head again. “No way. We’re just normal friends.”
Her mother sighed softly and said with a worried tone, “Whether you do or not, you’d better not date anyone right now. It’s easy for men to trick girls.”
“If you ever really like someone, bring him home for me to see first. Don’t just believe sweet words.”
“I know, I know,” An Han said quickly, nodding non-stop.
I used to be a man myself, of course I know these things.
Someone like Chen Junjie, who kept changing girlfriends all the time, was exactly the kind of “sweet-talking guy” her mother was warning about. But honestly, she thought to herself, most men aren’t that complicated…
While quietly disagreeing with her mother, she changed the subject. “My legs are getting tired. Can we go back?”
“No rush. How about getting your hair done first? Make yourself look prettier?”
“Uh…”
An Han touched her short hair. “Isn’t it too short to style?”
Besides, if she really dressed up completely like a girl, who knew what her classmates would say? Still, she felt a bit uncertain.
Her mother didn’t care about her hesitation and firmly grabbed her hand. “Come on, a girl should look like a girl. What kind of look is this supposed to be?”
“But my classmates…”
“Who cares what they think?”
Maybe that’s true… she thought.
If she started wearing girls’ clothes in front of her classmates now, then by the time her ID officially changed and she moved into the girls’ dorm, they wouldn’t be too shocked. As for gossip, she’d already heard plenty of that lately. A little more didn’t matter.
Her mother’s decisiveness completely broke through her hesitation.
She realized she actually liked people who took charge, whether it was her mother or Su Peng.
After all, she was terrible at making decisions herself, and strong-willed people helped her make choices she couldn’t.