487 The Naming
Selma Payne’s POV:
Although I knew what was happening, I couldn’t calm down before I saw the wolf cub – what if something went wrong? What if he failed? What if he suddenly had an idea and pushed himself onto a strange path?
Everything returned to normal the moment I saw the wolf cub.
It was a cute child who was curiously looking at the world with his young eyes.
The moment I saw him, I couldn’t help but cry. Dorothy, who was by my side, supported my limp body and said happily but helplessly, “Isn’t that good? The child is very healthy, you should be relieved now.”
I choked and couldn’t say a word. I only felt that the mountain-like pressure that had been pressing down on me suddenly dissipated.
I wanted to go forward and hug the child, but the child opened his arms one step ahead of me and wobbled to my side. Then, he leaned on me lightly and hugged my thigh.
“Look at how smart this child is. He knows that you’re his mother,” Dorothy said gently.
I picked up the child and felt he was more fragile and precious than any treasure I had ever seen. The child only chuckled and grabbed my hair with his lotus root-like hands.
“Oh my god, my baby…” I gently rubbed the child’s tender cheeks, and his skin was wet with tears, but he didn’t seem to notice it and just smiled at me.
Then, my mother ran in. This anxious grandmother couldn’t care about her image as the Queen at the moment, and her hair was loose. When she saw the healthy and cute little child in my arms, her legs immediately went soft, and she fell to the ground.
Dorothy and Bertha quickly helped her up. My mother struggled to get up and reached out as if she wanted to hold her child, but she stopped halfway and retracted her hand in embarrassment, looking a little helpless.
The child stared curiously at his grandmother and waved his little arms in response to her. But he didn’t receive a soft and warm embrace, so he looked at his grandmother curiously and suddenly laughed, mumbling some baby language that adults couldn’t understand.
“Mother.” I moved the child toward her. “Hug him. He misses his grandmother so much.”
My mother, however, hesitated and flinched. “No, I don’t have the strength. I’ll fall.”
“How heavy can a child be? Don’t worry, I’m sure you can hold him.” I pretended not to understand what my mother was saying and stuffed the child into her arms. “He’s so well-behaved and cute!”
The child chuckled at his grandmother, grabbed a strand of long hair that was hanging in front of him, leaning on his grandmother’s chest, and yawned.
My mother immediately asked nervously, “Is he sleepy? I think I should put him down. He should go to sleep.”
“I don’t think there’s any warmer and softer crib than your arms,” I said, shrugging. “If you’re okay with it, why don’t you try to coax the child to an afternoon nap? ”
My mother seemed still in the dark about everything and had not yet reacted to what had happened. She stiffly held the child and half-laid on the soft sofa bed under our comfort. Then, she unconsciously patted the child’s back as if she was really coaxing the child to sleep.
This shocked her when she reacted as if she didn’t realize what she had just done.
However, the child’s gentle breathing and warm body temperature gradually brought her back to the real world from her dream. She stared at the child’s heaving chest and suddenly burst into tears.
“Oh, little wolf cub, my baby, my baby…”
She buried her face in the child’s chest, her tears quickly wetting the bib printed with the evergreen flower.
Dorothy and Bertha left silently. I sat beside her and gently hugged her. “Everything is in the past. Everything is developing in a good direction, Mother. Look at this child, he’s so healthy and energetic. Nothing bad happened, just like what we saw, nothing happened. All I have is a healthy and adorable child, that’s all.”
My mother raised her head. Behind her teary eyes was a deep worry and depression that pierced my heart like a sharp needle.
“A… A child?” My mother muttered.
“Yes.” I nodded and gently touched the child’s snow-white cheek. My mother’s eyes were also drawn to the child’s peaceful sleeping face. “The wolf cub – oh, we still call him that. Perhaps we should seriously think about his name. Perhaps this child is unwilling to turn himself into a boy or girl for the time being, but I think he must be unwilling to introduce himself as a ‘wolf cub’ to the students at the opening ceremony.”
My mother’s tears turned into a smile. “Yes, yes. A name. We must think carefully, just like your father and I named you back then.”
I heaved a sigh of relief as I watched my mother’s emotions gradually stabilize. However, a certain part of my heart started to ache again.
My parents named me. What about my little wolf?
‘Aldrich, my love, I know you definitely wouldn’t want to miss such a big event like naming your child, so when will you open your eyes?’
