“Ah…”

Ye-jin thought she would feel better today, but her symptoms were getting worse.

Ye-jin, who had been about to put a spoonful of food in her mouth, changed her mind. She put the spoon down on the table and stood up.

When did it start? When had these symptoms begun?

Lost in thought, she sank onto the sofa. She had been feeling nauseous and dizzy all the time lately. She was especially sensitive to food smells.

“No way…?”

Her eyes trembled faintly.

“…It can’t be.”

It made sense, so he had been extremely careful to avoid pregnancy. However, the problem was that her symptoms were identical to those of an early pregnancy.

“That time…?”

She had firmly believed that she wasn’t pregnant — that it was impossible — but a thought flashed quickly through her mind. About a month ago, when the ballet season finally ended, they had gone to a hotel and done everything they hadn’t been able to do for a while.

There had been a moment when they were both far too excited.

Ye-jin carefully placed her hand over her lower belly.

She didn’t think it was possible, yet a quiet, hopeful warmth welled up inside her. At the same time, worry crept in.

She had miscarried three times before and, more than anything, he didn’t want children. What if he didn’t welcome the news? What if he fell silent, overwhelmed or reluctant?

The thought alone frightened her.

Ye-jin stood up, stumbling slightly, and made her way to the bedroom. She was planning to change her clothes and walk to the pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test.

But even that short walk felt exhausting. She was a ballet dancer, so there was no way she lacked stamina.

Come to think of it, she felt slightly feverish, too.

Maybe she shouldn’t go to the pharmacy after all. Perhaps she should go straight to the gynaecologist instead.

She wanted to call him right away, but decided to wait until she knew for sure. Actually, she was scared.

If she told him she thought she was pregnant and he froze, or didn’t seem happy, she was afraid it would break her.

It wasn’t certain yet, so she decided to go to the hospital first and headed to the dressing room.

“Ye-jin! Ye-jin, where are you?”

From farther away in the living room, she heard him calling for her.

“I’m here!”

Hearing her voice, his footsteps quickly approached.

“What are you doing?”

“Ah… my clothes got a little dirty, so I was going to change. But why are you home so early?”

It wasn’t anywhere near his usual time to get off work. When she asked if he had come already, he approached with a sly smile.

“I finished early. Are you happy?”

He pulled her close like something precious, and Ye-jin simply stared at him.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Her thoughts were in a muddle. Should she tell him now when she wasn’t even sure herself? No, he had made it clear that he didn’t want children. He had even mentioned getting a vasectomy, and she had struggled to convince him not to go ahead with it.

His arms loosened. Ye-jin slipped from his embrace and took a step back as he began to undress. She fiddled with her fingers and her lips parted slightly. No — she would tell him after she had visited the hospital and confirmed it for sure.

“Should we shower together?”

At his suggestive question, she shook her head.

“I’m tired. I’m going to rest a little.”

“Really? Are you that tired?”

She ignored the disappointment in his voice.

“Come to think of it, your color isn’t good. Did you eat?”

“Yes, I ate.”

His gentle gaze abruptly sharpened. He narrowed his eyes and swept her up and down in a quick, assessing glance.

It felt like he might read every thought in her head, so she turned away.

“H–hurry and go shower. I’m going to nap.”

Fortunately, she could use her poor health as an excuse in situations like this. Lying on the bed, Ye-jin bit her lip anxiously.

What should she do?

Facing him directly made her lose her nerve. She had planned to go to the hospital, but now she wasn’t sure she could go through with it.

When the bathroom door opened, she shut her eyes and pretended to sleep. His heavy footsteps, much like their owner, approached. Warm eyes lingered on her face.

His hand brushed her forehead, tinged with worry. His palm glided across her cheek and she opened her eyes involuntarily because it felt so warm.

“Did I wake you?”

“…No.”

“If you’re not feeling well, should we go to the hospital?”

He brushed her hair back, pressing a kiss onto her forehead. All he wanted was for her to be healthy. Ye-jin shook her head.

“I’ll feel better after a nap.”

“Alright. Rest well.”

He tucked the blanket up to her chin and stepped out.

For some strange reason, she felt relieved that she wasn’t going to the gynecologist today.

❖ ❖ ❖

“Haa…”

A sigh slipped from Ye-jin’s lips. It had already been ten days since she confirmed the pregnancy, yet she still hadn’t told him.

When she coldly pushed him away unaware she was pregnant, he had kept approaching her as usual he seemed to have taken it the wrong way.

“Who said you had to stop after just once?”

Early pregnancy meant she needed to be careful, but he, knowing nothing, never backed down when it came to s*x. He would keep going and going until he was satisfied. That was why she refused.

‘Do you know how many days you’ve been rejecting me now?’

Recalling how he had turned away frostily as he left for a business trip made Ye-jin’s shoulders droop.

With a downcast expression, she tucked her hair behind her ear and made up her mind. When he returned, she would tell him the truth.

She had tried several times before. Each time, she remembered his words — that he didn’t want a child — and backed off out of fear.

But this time, she would gather her courage. She had barely managed to eat crackers because her stomach felt terrible and she had no energy left.

“…I miss him.”

She missed him so much.

Ye-jin, who had been sprawled weakly on the sofa, shot upright at the sound of the front door.

“O–oh, you’re home?”

She was so happy to see him but it didn’t seem to be the same for him. His cold expression made Ye-jin stop mid-step as she tried to approach him.

“Yeah. I’m home.”

“Um… I have something to tell you.”

“Say it.”

He loosened his tie with a tired gesture and walked past her. She tried to follow.

“Uugh!”

As he passed, a strong scent of perfume hit her nose. Ye-jin immediately covered her mouth, holding her breath, but the nausea surged anyway.

“What’s wrong?”

No, it couldn’t be, she knew it couldn’t. But the scent of a woman’s perfume clinging to him made her eyes tremble.

“Are you sick?”

Seeing tears rise, he hurried toward her and grabbed her shoulders.

“Let go… Let go of me.”

“Why, what’s wrong? Hm?”

She slapped away the hand checking her face and forced herself to stand straight.

“What’s with the perfume smell?”

“Perfume? I don’t smell anything.”

Her tears finally spilled.

“No, seriously, what misunderstanding is this? I only have you. Where would another woman even come from?”

“……”

“The perfume in the elevator was heavy, but… did it rub off on me?”

He looked genuinely confused, saying he really couldn’t smell anything. Ye-jin avoided him and sat on the sofa.

“Is it really that strong? Should I wash up?”

“…It’s fine.”

“You don’t trust me?”

“I do trust you… Uugh!”

Admitting that she had become sensitive to smells because of her pregnancy only made matters worse. Her stomach flipped violently.

If she didn’t leave immediately, she was going to vomit on the floor.

She ran to the bathroom, grabbed the toilet and heaved. She hadn’t eaten much, so nothing came up except the awful nausea. She thought she was going to go crazy.

“Let’s go to the hospital. Now.”

“…We don’t need to.”

With his help, she got up and rinsed her mouth at the sink.

“Then I’ll call a doctor.”

“I said it’s fine.”

“You look pale. Are you sure you’re not sick?”

His worried voice made a wave of emotion surge through her.

She bit her lip to hold back tears, but her chin trembled uncontrollably.

“…Was it because I didn’t let you? Is that why you were angry?”

Is that why he had treated her coldly?

“What? No. Of course not.”

“Liar.”

“I didn’t mean to… haah. I just— I was scared I’d jump on you. Every time I see you, I want to hold you, touch you. And I keep pushing even when you say no. I felt like a bastard.”

She grabbed his arm, stopping his self-loathing.

“Don’t say things like that.”

“…What?”

“Don’t curse. Don’t say things like that. The baby can hear.”

“…Ah. Okay. I won’t. So the misunderstanding is clea— wait, what?”

His eyes widened until they looked like they might tear.

“Did I… hear that wrong?”

His jaw started trembling and then tears fell in heavy drops.

“Why are you crying? Are you… not happy about the baby?”

Unable to hide her fear, she asked.

He pulled her into a crushing embrace.

“Not happy?” I’m so grateful! The fact that someone like me gets to be a father… I promise I’ll do well. I swear I’ll do so well that you’ll never get hurt again.”

“I will too… I’ll tell you everything honestly right away so you won’t misunderstand.”

“Thank you. Really… thank you.”

They held onto each other and sobbed like children. He cried, and she cried. They cried for a long time.

“The truth is… I told myself being happy with just the two of us was enough, but…I kept wishing we could have a baby. But then I’d worry because of your body…”

“This time, we’ll protect it. Together. We’ll protect our baby.”

“Yeah. We will.”

He whispered for her not to be startled then lifted her into his arms.

“Why?”

“I have to be careful with you. Let’s go to the hospital first.”

“Why the hospital? I already went.”

“We’re getting you admitted.”

“What?”

He strode toward the front door with long, determined steps. She tried to stop him, but he wouldn’t listen.

“I think being admitted would be best. Your face looks like you haven’t eaten properly for days.”

“…I don’t want to be hospitalized.”

“Listen to me. Please?”

The worry on his face made her fall silent.

“…Alright.”

She was about to tell him that she wasn’t stressed anymore and that she was feeling fine, but then she changed her mind. Instead, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

“Then let’s just do whatever the doctor says. If the doctor says I don’t need to be admitted, then I won’t.”

“Okay.”

He stepped outside without putting on his shoes, and Ye-jin thought, not for the first time, that he was going to be a gentle father.

In fact, he was definitely going to be overprotective.