Rebirth in the Apocalypse: Third Time's a Charm



I brought the fork up to my mouth again, willing myself to fight against the nausea, but it was just not happening. The babies apparently didn't appreciate chocolate cake as much as I did. I gritted my teeth and vanished my slice, glaring at Liu Yu Zeng, who was enjoying his.

This was complete and utter bullshit. Life was not fair, I tell you!

"No go on the chocolate cake?" asked Liu Yu Zeng, and I could see the pity in his eyes as he looked at me. I let out a low growl as I conjured a cup of coffee. I was able to drink it just fine yesterday, thank God. If I didn't have coffee for the next few months, I couldn't guarantee that the guys would be willing to put up with me. Even if it was their fault for all of this.

I wrapped my hands around the mug, not at all caring what it said, and brought it up to my nose to inhale the aroma of nature's most perfect bean.

Only to feel the nausea swell up and start choking me.

I looked at the man beside me, tears running down my face as I handed him the mug before bolting to the bathroom to be sick. Fuck my life. This could not be happening.

Puking up absolutely nothing because the little brats hadn't let me eat anything yet, I moaned in dismay. If this was what life was like, pregnant, then I was never going through it again. I thought the twins were little angels, not making themselves known or causing me any discomfort, but apparently, they were just biding their time to really hit me.

Wang Chao walked into the bathroom and gathered my hair in his hands as my stomach continued to cramp up, trying to get everything out. He kissed my head and muttered sweet nothings into my ear until this round stopped, and I was able to flush the toilet. Folding my arms over the top of the seat, I let my head drop down.

"This sucks," I muttered, not at all happy with life.

"I know," he answered softly. "Let's hope it is because you overdid it yesterday."

"They wouldn't let me even eat chocolate cake! Or coffee! How am I to live for the next eight months or so without chocolate cake and coffee?" I asked, the tears in my eyes coursing down as I looked up at him.

"We'll find a way," he promised just as there was a loud knock on the door. I moaned, not at all willing to deal with company this early in the morning.

"One of the others will deal with it," he assured me. His fingers combed through my hair, patiently untangling the knots. "You just concentrate on getting better."

"Oh fuck no," growled Liu Yu Zeng. Wang Chao and I exchanged a look before I was trying to shoo him out of the bathroom. That didn't sound good, and knowing Liu Yu Zeng, if whoever was at the door pissed him off enough, he would be more than happy to shoot first and deal with the consequences later.

"It's not a bad plan," said Wang Chao, clearly reading my mind. I glared at him and picked myself up off the floor.

"I am going to bed," I replied. "I don't want to deal with a dead body on the floor when I wake up, do you understand?"

The asshole simply chuckled, neither agreeing nor disagreeing with my statement. Rolling my eyes, I went back to the bedroom and crawled into bed. Hopefully, things would be better when I woke up.

----

"Oh fuck no," groaned Liu Yu Zeng as he opened the door. Standing outside in the hallway was Wu Bai Hee, and she looked just as happy to see him as he was to see her.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, pushing herself into the condo.

"I think the better question is: what are you doing here? Seeing as this is my condo and all," answered Wang Chao as he entered the living room and studied the clearly pregnant woman in front of him.

"Your condo? Don't you mean Liu Wei's condo?" sneered Wu Bai Hee, not once bothering to manipulate either one of the men standing in front of her. She looked around, trying to find Liu Wei, but noticed that he was nowhere to be found.

"Out," grunted Chen Zi Han, stepping out of the kitchen. "And you are not welcome here."

"Since when can a lowly enforcer tell me what to do?" sneered the woman. She only remembered at the moment that the Goddess wanted her to make nice with all of the men, but she really couldn't lower her standards to do it.

"Since he is welcome and you are not," replied Wang Chao. He was originally planning on leaving her alone, seeing as she was pregnant and all. Still, she was yet another loose end that needed to be dealt with. As Liu Wei's soulmate, she could not be allowed to live.

Which begged the question… "How are you alive?" he asked cocking his head to the side and studying her. Liu Wei was so sure that he had killed her and Death would know. So, how was she still alive and kicking?

"I am blessed by the Gods," smiled the woman, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "But that doesn't matter. Let's face it, you can't kill me."

"I beg to differ," grumbled Liu Yu Zeng, holding up his gun and pointing it at her head. "I am sure that if I kill you enough times, you will eventually stay dead."

"You can't, not here. This is my city, and if you so much as give me a bruise, every last person would rise up and rip you apart," she smirked, more than happy to let the three men know just how important she was in the grand scheme of things. City A was her playground, and no one would make it out alive if she decided that they should die. It really was as simple as that.

"Is she crazy?" asked Liu Yu Zeng in a loud whisper. His gun never wavered once as he looked over his shoulder at Wang Chao. "I mean, she has to be… right?"

"Not crazy, just highly manipulative," shrugged Wang Chao. He was not above killing a pregnant woman, especially one as disgusting as the woman in front of him.

"What the hell is going on?" asked a new voice. Turning to look at the door, Wang Chao snorted as Zhao Jun Jie strolled in as if he owned the place. "Why do you have a gun pointed at my woman?"

"Because she broke into our condo, and I am scared for my life," answered Liu Yu Zeng without blinking an eye.

"A man like you scared of a tiny woman like her?" sneered Zhao Jun Jie, looking first at Liu Yu Zeng and then Wang Chao over. How could the two of them be so put together this far into the Apocalypse? They just arrived yesterday, and they looked like they had been here from the very beginning.

For fucks sake, they looked better than he did, and he was the controller of the city.

"Anyone with brains should be scared of a pit viper in their midst," said Liu Wei, maneuvering around Zhao Jun Jie and Wu Bai Hee and walking over to where Chen Zi Han stood. "I couldn't buy any prenatal vitamins; apparently, they are only to be sold to the princess of the city over there, but I did manage to get my hands on some folic acid. Hopefully, that will do for now."

"I should be able to supplement a good portion of the rest through her diet," muttered Chen Zi Han, the two men completely ignoring everyone else in the room.

Realizing that she was not the center of everyone's attention, Wu Bai Hee stomped her foot, almost slipping in the process.

"Liu Wei, I demand that you give me your attention," she said, turning to the man reading the back of the vitamin container.

"Nope," replied Liu Wei; he wished that the Healer would have told him how much folic acid his Queen was expected to take per day instead of just telling them it was necessary.

"Wu Bai Hee," growled Zhao Jun Jie. He was not nearly as enamored with her as he used to be, but that didn't mean he would let his woman flaunt herself at some other man, especially not when she was pregnant with his child. "Compose yourself."

"Don't bother," said Li Dai Lu, coming out of the bedroom. She still looked half asleep and more than a little cranky. "She will not die. The child is a precious gift, one that is free from the sins of its parents. Kill her after she gives birth."

Zhao Jun Jie opened his mouth to demand who the woman was but quickly shut it again when the gun swung over in his direction. Pulling Wu Bai Hee's arms, he dragged her out the door.

"This is not the end," screeched the woman, frantically trying to fight Zhao Jun Jie's hold.

"It really is. You are no longer our problem. Go be someone else's," waved Li Dai Lu before turning to look at the men. "It's over. Understood?"

The four men nodded their heads. If she said it was someone else's problem, then they would accept it.