Chapter 10

POV: Amelie

My unsteady steps carried me back into the nursery. The two female caregivers who had been keeping watch immediately stood when they saw me arrive with tear-stained eyes and a disheveled face.

“Madam? Is there anything we can do?” one of the caregivers asked anxiously.

I shook my head slowly, trying to steady my voice so it would sound normal. “No need. You can go rest in your rooms. I’ll stay with Ardhana until morning tonight.”

The two caregivers exchanged glances for a moment, but they did not argue and immediately nodded obediently. After they left and closed the door firmly behind them, silence immediately descended upon the room.

That was when I remembered something that suddenly made my head ache. Amora’s smartphone had been left on the nightstand in the master bedroom! I had planned to contact my twin tonight to demand an explanation. If I had to retrieve it now, I would have to return to the master bedroom and face Reyvano. The risk was too great, especially after what had happened in the hallway earlier. Reluctantly, I had no choice but to postpone my plan to call her until tomorrow morning.

I let out a long sigh, then walked toward the baby’s crib. I gently stroked Ardhana’s head as he slept soundly without a care in the world. Since there was too little room for me to rest comfortably in the rocking chair, I decided to lift his tiny body and carry him to lie beside me on the small bed in the caregivers’ room.

As soon as my body sank onto the mattress, a new problem immediately attacked me with overwhelming intensity.

My breasts felt extremely full, even though Ardhana had only nursed a few hours ago. My milk production was exceptionally abundant—a blessing and a torment for my body, which no longer had a biological baby to nurse regularly. Because they were so full, my breasts had begun to swell and harden, feeling hot, stiff, and excruciatingly painful with every movement. The pressure spread toward my armpits and shoulders, making every breath feel agonizing.

I rolled to the left, then to the right, searching for the most comfortable position to relieve the pressure in my chest, but to no avail. Ardhana, sleeping beside me, stirred slightly, making me afraid to move too freely lest he wake up and cry again.

The pain and discomfort grew worse. The skin around my breasts felt as though it were being pulled from within. I knew that if I left it like this, my milk ducts could become blocked and trigger inflammation that would be far more painful. I needed a breast pump.

With extreme caution, I slipped out of bed, adjusted Ardhana’s little blanket, and then walked out of the nursery toward the lower floor. My destination was the main kitchen. Surely, in a mansion this luxurious, there had to be an electric breast pump prepared by the servants or purchased by Amora beforehand.

When I reached the dark kitchen, I switched on the wall lights and began searching through the storage cabinets and kitchen drawers. I checked every corner hurriedly, but all I found were modern cooking utensils, a blender, and crystal glasses. There was no breast pump anywhere.

I slowly slumped against the kitchen cabinet, biting my lower lip hard to suppress a whimper. The pain in my breasts was becoming unbearable, pressing against my chest until my head began to spin. What should I do? If this continued, I could develop a fever from the engorgement.

With unsteady steps and increasingly labored breaths, I decided to return upstairs to the nursery.

When I entered the room, Ardhana was still sleeping soundly, curled up adorably on the bed. I couldn't bear to wake him in the middle of the night just to nurse him again. His little stomach must already be full.

Desperate, I raised my hand and tried to gently massage the hardened surface of my breast to relieve the pain. But even that light touch triggered pain several times sharper than before.

“Ah...!” I cried out, the tears immediately spilling from my eyes as the pain pierced all the way to my bones.

I fell to my knees beside the bed, clutching my chest while biting my lower lip so hard that it nearly bled. I suppressed my sobs so I would not wake Ardhana, but my body trembled violently as I endured this unbearable physical torment. My milk production was truly excessive, and my body refused to stop producing it.

Suddenly, the nursery door opened with a soft push.

I gasped and hurriedly lifted my tearful eyes. Standing motionless in the doorway was a tall figure dressed in black pajama pants.

Reyvano.

The man stared at me with deeply furrowed brows. Apparently, he had not truly fallen into a deep sleep. Worried because I had simply left after our small argument in the master bedroom earlier, he had decided to come out and check whether I was really in the nursery.

However, the sight that greeted him was not a woman sleeping peacefully, but me kneeling on the floor with a deathly pale face, tears streaming down my cheeks, and my body trembling from the pain.

Reyvano immediately hurried toward me. He knelt in front of me, his face filled with overwhelming panic.

“Amora...?” Reyvano called anxiously, immediately reaching out to grasp both my shoulders. “My God, what’s wrong? What happened?!”

I shook my head weakly and squeezed my eyes shut. I couldn't possibly tell him the truth—that my body was suffering from severe engorgement caused by excessive milk production, because that would only open the door to more questions about my actual condition.

“I-I... I’m fine, Rey...” I stammered between sobs, trying to gently push his hands away so he would move back.

Reyvano obviously did not believe me. His grip on my shoulders only tightened. He stared intently at my face, scanning every inch of my expression that betrayed my pain.

“Amora, don’t lie to me!” Reyvano’s voice rose an octave, sounding frustrated and demanding. “Tell me, what’s wrong with you? Why are you crying this badly?!”

I bit my lip even harder, refusing to speak. The pain in my chest grew increasingly unbearable, making me feel as though I was about to lose consciousness.

“M-My chest...” I whispered so softly that it was almost inaudible, as shame and pain tangled together in my mind.

Reyvano’s brows drew even closer together, his breathing becoming heavier. The man looked utterly confused as he tried to process my words. “What’s wrong with your chest, Amora?” he demanded, his hand moving closer as he tried to check my condition.

Before I could push his hand away, an unbearable warmth suddenly spread across the front of my clothes. The immense pressure inside my breasts caused my body’s natural release mechanism to give way.

An abundant flow of white milk began leaking out, soaking through the thin fabric of the pajamas I was wearing and creating a large wet stain across the front of my shirt. The distinct, sweet, rich scent of breast milk immediately filled the air between us.

Reyvano froze.

The hand that had been about to touch me suddenly stopped in midair. The man lowered his gaze, staring directly at the wet stain spreading across my chest before looking back into my eyes. His expression revealed immense confusion and shock, along with a dawning realization that was slowly beginning to come together in his mind.