The Moment That Changed Everything

Orm had been acting weird for the past few days.

Which, under normal circumstances, wouldn't be alarming. Orm being weird was a daily occurrence.

But this? This was different.

Lingling had noticed it immediately.

First, Orm refused her usual mango sticky rice.

Then, she gagged at the smell of coffee.

And this morning?

Lingling walked into the kitchen to find Orm standing in front of the fridge, staring at a bottle of orange juice like it had personally betrayed her.

"Babe." Lingling rubbed her temples. "Why are you glaring at the juice?"

Orm, looking deeply offended, turned to her. "It smells wrong."

Lingling blinked. "It smells like... orange juice."

"No," Orm insisted, dramatic as ever. "It smells like it's judging me."

Lingling just stared.

Then, very slowly, she put down her coffee.

Because that's when it hit her.

The mango sticky rice. The coffee aversion. The mood swings. The weird sense of smell.

Lingling's heart pounded.

And then—

Orm cried during a commercial.

A soap commercial.

About dishwashing liquid.

Lingling had never been more concerned in her life.

"Are you sick?" Lingling had asked, brows furrowed as Orm sat curled up on the couch, sniffling into a tissue.

"No," Orm had sniffed. "It's just—look at this mother washing dishes for her family. She works so hard, Ling. She deserves a vacation."

Lingling had stared at her wife. Then at the screen. Then back at her sniffling, emotional wife.

"Orm."

"What?"

"That's an advertisement for dish soap."

Orm glared. "And?"

"And you're crying over it."

"Orm."

Orm, hummed. "Yeah?"

Lingling took a deep breath. "I think it's time we take a test."

For the first time that day, Orm went still.

She turned to Lingling fully, eyes wide.

A beat of silence.

Then—

"Oh my god."*

Step One: Get the pregnancy test.

Step Two: Try not to cause a public scene.

Which, of course, Orm failed spectacularly at.

Because five minutes later, they were standing in the pharmacy aisle, and Orm was treating it like a reality TV shopping challenge.

"Ooooh! Digital! Oh, wait—this one has a smiley face option! Babe, what if we get one of each?"

Lingling, one inconvenience away from a migraine, pinched the bridge of her nose. "Orm, just pick one before I start questioning my life choices."*

Orm, completely ignoring her, grabbed three different boxes. "Better safe than sorry, right?"

Lingling sighed. "We literally had a medical procedure designed to make this happen. You don't need to test it like you're running a science experiment."

Orm gasped. "Ling, this is the most important pee of my life! I need options!"

Lingling stared blankly at her wife. "Never say that sentence again."

The tests sat on the bathroom counter.

Orm paced.

Lingling paced harder.

"Okay," Orm exhaled, shaking out her hands. "I just pee on the stick. Simple. Easy."

Lingling crossed her arms. "Why are you acting like you're about to defuse a bomb?"

"Because I feel like I'm about to change the course of history, Ling. Let me have my moment."

Lingling dragged a tired hand down her face. "Just go."*

Orm saluted. "Aye aye, captain."

Then she grabbed the tests and marched into the bathroom.

Three minutes later.

Orm stepped out, holding the first test up like it was a sacred artifact.

Lingling swallowed. "Well?"

Orm took a deep breath, then turned the test around.

Two bright pink lines stared back at them.

Lingling's entire world stopped.

Orm didn't move.

Didn't speak.

Then, very softly—

"Ling."

Lingling's chest tightened.

Orm let out a breathless laugh. "It's positive."

Lingling felt dizzy.

Even though she had prepared for this.

Even though this had been the plan.

Nothing—absolutely nothing—could have prepared her for the feeling.

Her brain refused to catch up.

"Do the others."

Orm, nodding furiously, grabbed the second test.

Positive.

The third.

Positive.

Lingling felt her knees go weak.

"Oh my god."

Her hand gripped the bathroom counter for support.

This was real.

This was happening.

They were having a baby.

Lingling lifted her gaze to Orm, and that's when she saw it—

The way Orm's hands trembled slightly.

The way her eyes glistened with emotion.

The way her entire face broke into the most radiant, tearful smile Lingling had ever seen.

Orm let out a choked laugh.

"We're pregnant."

Lingling couldn't breathe.

There were no words in any language to describe what she was feeling in that moment.

Overwhelmed.

Terrified.

Joyful.

Completely in love.

And then—

Lingling broke.

A laugh—a breathless, disbelieving laugh—escaped her lips, and suddenly, she was crying.

Lingling Kwong, CEO of an empire, a woman known for her ice-cold composure, for never faltering, never breaking—

She was completely, utterly undone.

By this.

By her.

By Orm, standing there, holding their future in her hands.

Orm let out another laugh, tears slipping down her cheeks.

"Ling, you're crying."

"Shut up," Lingling sniffled, pulling Orm into her arms.

Orm laughed harder, pressing her face into Lingling's shoulder. "Oh my god, this is the best day of my life."

Lingling tightened her grip, burying her face in Orm's neck.

"Mine too."

Lingling pulled back slightly, cupping Orm's face, pressing gentle kisses everywhere—

On her forehead. Her cheeks. Her nose. Her lips.

"I love you," she whispered between each kiss. "I love you. I love you so much."

Orm let out a tiny laugh, her voice breaking. "I love you too."

Lingling pulled her in again, holding her like she was afraid to let go.

"I can't believe we're having a baby," Orm whispered.

Lingling smiled, pressing one last lingering kiss to her lips. "Believe it."

Orm giggled, breathless, tearful, full of joy. "We're gonna be moms."

Lingling let out a small, disbelieving laugh, resting their foreheads together.

"Yeah." she whispered. "We are."

And with that, their new chapter began.