First Municipal Hospital, Department of Nephrology.
Lin Zhou accompanied Shen Che for his follow-up appointment. This was the first time she had walked into this place, which he had entered alone over a thousand times, as his "family."
The corridor was filled with patients and their families, their faces etched with varying degrees of anxiety and exhaustion. Lin Zhou held Shen Che's hand tightly, her own palm sweaty.
She was finally experiencing firsthand the cold, cruel world he had been facing for the past three years.
The doctor, a man in his fifties, was surprised to see Lin Zhou with Shen Che.
"And this is?"
"She's my... wife," Shen Che answered, his voice not loud, but incredibly firm.
Lin Zhou's heart skipped a beat.
The doctor looked at the latest test results, his brow furrowing. "The situation isn't optimistic. Your creatinine levels are up again. Xiao Che, dialysis will become less and less effective. You're still young. The best option is a kidney transplant."
"But a donor kidney..." Shen Che's voice trailed off.
"I've already submitted your information to the national matching system. All we can do is wait. Also, your immediate family can get tested for a match. The success rate is higher," the doctor suggested.
Leaving the clinic, Shen Che was in low spirits.
"Zhou Zhou, don't worry, I..."
"I'll get tested," Lin Zhou interrupted, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"No!" Shen Che refused without a second thought. "Absolutely not! I will not let you take that risk for me!"
"It's not a risk!" Lin Zhou looked him in the eye and said, word by word, "Shen Che, listen to me. Before, you were fighting alone. But from today on, you're not. Your illness is my illness. Your future is my future. We're going to face this together, understand?"
Her gaze was so firm, so brave, like a beam of light that instantly illuminated all the darkness and anxiety in Shen Che's heart.
He looked at her, speechless, and could only nod vigorously, tears streaming down his face against his will.
He knew. His Zhou Zhou had finally come back.