Part 12

She had slept a deep, restful sleep for the first time in a while. Contrary to her worries about having nightmares, she slept through the night without dreaming at all.

“…?”

Slowly opening her eyes, she met Jiwook’s gaze as he silently watched her from the side. Jiwook reached out and gently stroked her cheek.

“Morning, how are you feeling?”

It was a familiar phrase he’d been using a lot lately. He was concerned about her physical condition. Still groggy from not fully waking up from sleep, Seowoo nodded her head as if to say she was okay.

“If you’re tired, sleep a little more.”

“…When did you wake up?”

“About 30 minutes ago.”

After having a hearty meal and taking a shower, she had fallen asleep like passing out from exhaustion.

It had been a while since she had been at Jiwook’s house. But somehow, she felt at home, whether it was because of his presence or the familiar scent. It felt as comfortable as her own home.

“I need to go to the office for a while this morning. There are some things I need to sort out.”

He had hardly gone to work these past few days, trying to changer her mind. But he couldn’t put a complete stop to all his responsibilities.

If he ignored everything, the consequences would fall solely on his employees. As he was only handling the bare minimum, Hyeong-gyeong still urged him to come back.

“I’ll be back soon, so just rest.”

Seowoo gave a small nod.

“If you need anything or want to eat something, just tell me. I’ll buy it for you.”

Jiwook’s hand slid down from her face and gently caressed the bulge in Seowoo’s lower stomach.

His touch was more careful than ever, as if he were touching something precious.

A small smile tugged at the corners of Jiwook’s mouth.

“What’s the nicknames?”

Come to think of it, he hadn’t even asked about nicknames yet.

Unsure of what to call, Jiwook turned to Seowoo curiously. A faint smile crosses Seowoo’s face.

“Kong and Tteok.”

“Kongtteok?”

“Yes. Strangely, I really wanted to eat Kongddeok (Black Bean Rice Cake). So, I named them that way.”

She had felt guilty for giving the ‘Byul’ a name with special meaning, only for her to depart first. So, this time, Seowoo decided to name the twins with an easy-to-call name without any special meaning. 

Even though she didn’t have much of an appetite, she had a strong craving for kongtteok, hence Kong and Tteok.

“Cute.”

Jiwook smiled satisfactorily. After a while of caressing, he gently pulled her slender waist towards him. Then, he leaned in and kissed her forehead.

“I’m sorry.”

Seowoo’s expression turned puzzled at his sudden apology.

“I went ahead and released the news about our reconciliation, without consulting you.”

Throughout the funeral, he received reports from Cheol-hoon about the situation. Articles related to them had already spread all over the internet. Pictures of them together, going to the obstetrician, and Jiwook carrying Seowoo to the hospital from the department store—all of it.

He had no intention of refuting it, but he couldn’t keep postponing it either. So Jiwook had released the reconciliation news without even asking for Seowoo’s consent. And the news of her pregnancy was also included as well.

“Releasing an article without asking…”

“No, it’s okay. You did the right thing.”

To his surprise, an unexpected response came from her lips. Jiwook was momentarily at a loss for words.

“I was going to do it anyway. Don’t worry about it.”

“Seowoo.”

“Since you said you’d handle everything yourself, I’ll be right behind you.”

“Yeah. I’ll take care of everything.”

Jiwook pulled her into his arms and Seowoo wrapped her arms around his waist.

“Thank you.”

Jiwook expressed his sincerity. He had come a long way. 

While harboring feelings of love, he had inflicted countless wounds that were irreparable. It would be a lifetime of repaying. Just thinking about Seowoo was enough to make his heart ache.

He hoped only joyful things would come from now on.

Jiwook’s eyes sank low as he held her

***

[Have you eaten? Let me know if you need anything. I’d love to hear your voice, so feel free to call.]

Seowoo looked at the text and gave a small laugh. Even though he would be coming in the afternoon, Jiwook kept contacting her without a break.

For breakfast, she had eaten the food that Soon-ja had prepared in the morning. Soon-ja said she’d come over in the afternoon and cook dinner.

Despite Jiwook’s offer to stay in the guest room, Soon-ja had adamantly refused. So Jiwook arranged a hotel room for her to stay in. 

“…….”

Seowoo’s gaze fell on one side of the living room.

It was the wedding photo they had taken together. She thought he’d thrown it away after they got divorced and she moved out of the main house, but seeing it hanging on the wall, he must have kept it the whole time.

There was not a single smile on her face in the photo. As she stared blankly at it, she heard the vibration of a phone. Seowoo picked up the phone to check the caller.

“Why did you call?”

It was Jiwook’s call. After just texting her a bit ago, he had already called again.

• There’s something I didn’t tell you.

“What is it?”

• Your kongtteok (black bean rice cake) will be delivered in a few minutes.

“Kongtteok?”

• Didn’t you say you craved it?

Was it because of what I had said earlier in the morning? 

Seowoo let out a hollow laugh, finding it absurd. She used to crave it occasionally during the early stages of pregnancy, but now she doesn’t really want it. But she couldn’t just tell him the truth since he had ordered it for her.

“No, I do want to eat it.”

• I’m glad. I also ordered some other rice cakes. I heard this shop has delicious black sesame rice cakes, so I ordered that too.

“When will it be delivered?”

She had started feeling a bit hungry after breakfast. The mere thought of rice cakes made her mouth water.

• They said around 1 PM, so it will be there soon.

“Okay, I’ll eat it well.”

• I’ll hang up now.

The short call ended. Seowoo smiled faintly as she stared at her stomach.

“Kong, Tteok, Dad bought Kongtteok. It’s been a while since I’ve had them.”

Ding dong. 

While murmuring, the doorbell rang. She thought the delivery was here so Seowoo quickly walked to the front door and unlocked it.

Click.

“Yes.”

Seowoo’s face grew pale as she looked up to answer.

“It’s been a while.”

Surprised, Seowoo froze on the spot. The unexpected arrival had left her speechless.

“I thought I’d find you here, luckily it wasn’t a mistake.”

It really had been a while. Since the divorce, this was the first time.

Even when she was living in the main house, Hyeong-gyeong and her hadn’t gotten along, and she could only assume it was because he didn’t like her, or because of the trouble with his mom that Myeong-hye had mentioned.

“Let’s talk for a moment. I came because there’s something I need to say.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Please, I’m in a bit of a hurry right now.”

With those words, Hyeong-gyeong stormed into the house without her consent. He pushed past Seowoo and headed straight for the living room. Seowoo, standing in the doorway, closed the door behind him and followed.

Hyeong-gyeong had already taken a seat on the sofa and Seowoo kept her distance, standing away from him.

The sight of Hyeong-gyeong barging in on her just a day after she’d decided to reunite with Jiwook made her heart sink.

She wondered why he’d come when Jiwook wasn’t around. It almost seemed deliberate.