December 24th, Christmas Eve.
Lin Qi's apartment in Boston's Back Bay.
Outside the window, a howling blizzard shrouded the entire Boston in a white blanket of night. Inside the apartment, however, the climate control system diligently maintained the room temperature at a comfortable 24 degrees Celsius.
Beth had made sarcastic remarks about the place more than once. In her own words, Lin Qi's apartment was less a home and more a luxurious king-size bed room in a high-end hotel. Apart from the furniture and huge floor-to-ceiling windows, there was nothing superfluous, not even a decent picture frame, giving it an impersonal feel.
But tonight, because of Beth's presence, this "hotel showroom" finally has a touch of real life.
For these two people who are used to giving their all at work, being able to curl up on the sofa and watch TV for a while on this night is a rare luxury.
The TV in the living room was on, but it was muted, and some holiday news was playing on the screen.
Beth nestled lazily in Lin Qi's arms. Six months pregnant, she had to adjust to a slightly tilted position, curling her legs up on the large leather sofa. She held a glass of warm milk in one hand, while Lin Qi held a glass of the Macallan whiskey with ice in his left.
The air was quiet, with only a faint humming sound coming from the central air conditioning vents.
Lin Qi put down his wine glass, his right hand naturally encircling Beth's waist, his large palm gently resting on her protruding belly, occasionally casually playing with a strand of curly hair that fell over her shoulder.
Beth felt a little hot, so she shifted slightly to find a more comfortable position. Her oversized cotton shirt slipped half an inch off her shoulders with her movement, and her slightly cool skin brushed against Lin Qi's arm.
This seemingly ordinary action suddenly made the air on the sofa feel thick and sticky.
This is the kind of "physiological attraction" between them that cannot be explained by logic.
She saw his Adam's apple bob slightly, and Lin Qi heard her breathing become increasingly rapid.
The milk glass in Beth's hand tilted during the tug-of-war, spilling the warm liquid onto the carpet, but no one cared anymore.
Heavy breathing and suggestive sounds of friction mingled together, completely melting away the chill of this Christmas Eve.
I don't know how much time passed.
Beth leaned weakly against Lin Qi's chest, her hair slightly disheveled, her fair skin glistening with fine beads of sweat and a blush. Lin Qi pulled over a cashmere blanket and wrapped them both inside.
Beth closed her eyes, trying to calm the violent heaving in her chest. After a moment, reason returned to her mind, and she felt somewhat annoyed.
"You bastard..." Beth bit her lower lip, a hint of coquettishness and lingering fear on her face. She reached up and touched her round belly, her tone becoming stern, "You absolutely can't do this again."
"What?" Lin Qi asked knowingly, a satisfied smile on his face.
"You know perfectly well what I'm asking!" Beth glared at him, her expression regaining its usual courtroom air. "What if the child gets hurt?"
She poked Lin Qi's chest with her finger, issuing an ultimatum. "I'm warning you, Lin Qi. This is the last time. You'd better behave yourself before the baby is born... or I'm moving back to my own apartment and you won't even be able to get in."
Lin Qi caught her fingers that were poking his chest and gently kissed them.
"Yes, Miss Finneran." Lin Qi's voice held a gentle warmth after a moment of satisfaction.
The two snuggled together again, enjoying this rare moment of tranquility, completely free from work.
"I heard ' The Lord of the Rings ' just came out." Beth, with her eyes closed, traced circles on Lin Qi's heart with her finger, lazily initiating a casual conversation. "My college roommate is a Tolkien fanatic; she's obsessed. After this period, would you be interested in going to see it with me?"
"As long as there aren't any anti-intellectual scenes of cold weapon warfare, I can consider it," Lin Qi replied casually.
Beth, clearly used to his jarring comment, scoffed, "Then you'll probably be disappointed. I heard it's all elves and orcs fighting each other. But I also heard the elf casting is all very tall and handsome, like that actor named Orlando Blue."
"Tall?" For some reason, Lin Qi caught the word and casually asked, "How tall could he be?"
"I don't know, but he'll definitely be taller than you." Beth teased him deliberately, turning over and looking up at Lin Qi's cold, hard face. "Speaking of which, this kid's height shouldn't be a problem in the future. Our family's genes are actually quite extreme. Although I'm only 5 feet 7 inches (about 1.70 meters), all the men on my grandfather's side are tall."
"A big guy?" Lin Qi's eyes narrowed slightly, and a strange sense of professional alert seemed to suddenly surge into his previously relaxed body.
"Yes," Beth replied casually, oblivious to the change in Lin Qi's tone. "I have a distant cousin who, I heard, was seven feet tall when he was young, like a tower walking down the street. It's a pity he wasn't athletic; he ended up driving Tractor on a farm. But our family does have a recessive gene that allows for this kind of super-sized physique..."
Before Beth could finish speaking, she noticed that Lin Qi had completely sat up straight from his languid state.
Lin Qi frowned, his eyes unusually serious as he stared at Beth's stomach.
"Seven feet? Are you sure it's seven feet, and not some exaggerated measurement based on shoes?" Lin Qi's brain began racing uncontrollably. "Does your family have a history of congenital heart disease? Any record of degenerative changes in the knees or menisci? What's your father's bone density like? If this child inherits that seven-foot recessive gene, combined with my dynamic vision and nerve reaction speed..."
As Lin Qi spoke, he even subconsciously gestured in the air, as if a dominant player was already standing there.
"If he starts consuming protein scientifically from a young age and develops his ball-handling skills on the perimeter, he could be a perfect stretch five, or even a seven-foot small forward in his prime. When he enters the draft at 19, he'll be just in time..."
The air suddenly became still.
Lin Qi was immersed in the grand blueprint of his "star-making plan" when he suddenly sensed a chilling murderous aura.
He looked down and found Beth staring at him with the same look she gave a terminally ill patient.
The tenderness on her face had vanished without a trace.
" Lin Qi," Beth said through gritted teeth, enunciating each word clearly, "Can't we have one day, even on this damn Christmas Eve, without talking about basketball?! Without evaluating my child as a player?!"
"I didn't conduct any assessment..." Lin Qi tried to argue logically, "I was just making a reasonable genetic prediction and..."
"Shut up!"
Beth abruptly threw off the cashmere blanket and sat up from the sofa. She grabbed the shirt that had fallen on the carpet and haphazardly put it on.
"Go sleep on the sofa, you basketball-obsessed lunatic!"
Beth walked towards the bedroom without looking back, slamming the door shut with a loud bang. Immediately afterwards, the sound of the door being locked from the inside echoed.
Lin Qi sat shirtless on the sofa. A gust of cold wind blew in through the cracks in the French windows, making him more awake.
He glanced at the closed bedroom door, then at the spilled milk on the carpet, rubbed his temples helplessly, and let out a sigh that only he could understand.
"A seven-footer doesn't necessarily have to play center; he can be developed into a unicorn..."