Imperfect Desires

622 Things You Can\'t Buy

Xin Zimen had just entered through the main door when he heard his little princess\'s aggrieved voice as her small feet ran down the stairs. She was so distracted that he thought she\'d fall. And she did...

His heart lurched as he ran over to hold her. Thankfully, she didn\'t fell but it didn\'t decrease the intensity of the scare he just got. Kneeling on the floor, his arms hugged his baby girl in his arms, pressing her tightly against his chest. The little girl didn\'t even struggle in his arms and even tried to wrap her small arms around his neck as she sobbed.

As her hot tears fell on his neck, he felt like he was burned. He pushed her slightly to see her face that had scrunched up and big tears were hanging on her eyelashes. She looked really pitiful as she sniffled.

His heart broke at the sight. Wiping her tears, he asked, \'What happened to my baby? Who hurt my baby?\' He picked her off the ground as he went on, \'Did my baby get scared from the fall?\'

The little girl shook her head as she pointed her tiny finger towards the top of the stairs and complained, \'She made me cry.\'

Xin Zimen followed the direction of her finger and found his wife standing there, with Ah-Si held close to her bosom. He frowned as he asked, \'What did mommy do to baby? Tell daddy, I\'ll solve everything.\'

\'You promise you\'ll punish her?\' asked the little girl in her aggrieved tone.

Xin Zimen pressed his lips together. He neither had the heart to say anything to his wife nor did he had the heart to lie to his daughter. He was really stuck. So, he chose the safest route, \'First, tell daddy what happened?\'

\'Yesterday, baby wanted to take something from the dressing table and mommy said I can\'t have it because I might lose it.\' Her big black eyes looked accusingly at her mother who had descended the stairs with a subtle smile on her face. \'Today, that little devil in her arms actually broke everything on her dressing table and she didn\'t even care!\' Her eyes squinted at her little brother in her mother\'s arms as she added, \'This only proves one thing... Li bro said that once I was born, he no longer was mommy daddy\'s favorite and now, I know... since this little devil\'s birth, mommy daddy don\'t care about the baby.\'

\'Aiyo... How is that possible? Baby is always mommy daddy\'s favorite.\' Xin Zimen tried to coax his daughter who refused to listen.

\'Then why did mommy treat me and Ah-Si differently? I only wanted to try on her jewelry and she didn\'t let me. And this little one actually broke such expensive things and she didn\'t say anything. This is so not right!\'

Xin Zimen turned his eyes towards his wife as he said, \'Why didn\'t you just let her use your jewelry?\'

Xin Zimen frowned at his wife, \'So? Even if she lost it, we can buy again.\'

\'Exactly!\' added his daughter who was yet not over her tantrum.

Wen Ai narrowed her eyes at her husband making him take a step back as she said, \'Don\'t tell me you don\'t recognize these earrings?\' Before he could answer, she looked at her daughter and very patiently spoke, \'Baby, there are two types of things in life. One you can buy with money and one that you can\'t buy with money.\'

When she said those words, Xin Zimen bit his tongue. He only recalled now why his wife didn\'t want to let their daughter play with those earrings. He had bought those for her as a very first gift with his very first salary. He seriously wanted to smack his own head. But it also filled his heart with warmth. This was the relationship between them. They never needed to proclaim their love to each other. Because they both knew very well about their position in other\'s life and heart.

\'What can\'t be bought with money? The nanny said that money can buy everything.\'

Both Xin Zimen and Wen Ai\'s eyes hardened at that remark from their daughter. Xin Zimen gave a snort, \'Looks like we need to change the nanny.\'

Wen Ai didn\'t pay attention to her husband as she said to her daughter, \'Baby, do you love mommy and daddy?\' The little girl nodded her head vigorously. \'You can\'t buy mommy and daddy with money. Just like that, there are some feelings in this world that we can\'t buy with money. Because love is not a bargain. Love is unconditional and love is priceless.\'

The little girl pursed her lips and asked, \'So is mommy and daddy\'s love for baby is priceless? No one can take it from mommy? Not even this little devil?\'

Xin Zimen kissed her face saying, \'No. No one can take this love. Mommy and daddy only love their baby.\'

\'If baby can\'t have mommy\'s, baby wants her own earrings.\'

Xin Zimen chuckled at her innocence as he reminded, \'But baby can\'t wear it.\'

The little girl stubbornly insisted, \'Mommy\'s ear has a hole so she can wear it. Baby will also get it.\' Then she placed her hands on her father\'s face as she usually did and went on, \'Ah-Xin, get those for baby as well.\'

Wen Ai tried to dissuade her saying, \'No. It\'s painful.\'

The little girl jutted her bottom lip out and pouted pitifully before blinking her eyes at Xin Zimen. Even at this age, she knew how to break her father\'s defenses. Well, not like he had any defenses against her. \'Okay. But isn\'t baby scared of pain?\'

The little girl nodded her head but her sudden impulse got the best of her as she said, \'Then Ah-Xin needs to get one as well.\'

\'Huh? Why me?\' Xin Zimen didn\'t know how he got stuck in this.

\'If Ah-Xin will get one, baby won\'t feel pain.\'

Seeing the smile brightening the little girl\'s face, Xin Zimen was so fascinated that he couldn\'t help nodding in agreement. It was just piercing his ears. No big deal at all! He could even pierce his heart for this apple of his eyes!

As Xin Zimen\'s eyes opened in his bedroom, he was left staring at the ceiling blankly. His hand lifted to touch his pierced ears. He usually didn\'t take off the pair of earrings that his daughter chose for him personally but it had been a couple of months he was avoiding it for some reason.