I wanted to sleep a little longer. But it was noisy.

The constant disturbance annoyed me, and I frowned, my brows knitting together. Slowly, with effort, I forced my eyes open.

“…”

An unfamiliar space. An unfamiliar smell. Unfamiliar sounds.

My shoulders stiffened.

Startled by the stark white ceiling I had never seen before, my eyes darted around, scanning my surroundings.

Then I spotted a familiar back.

Relief washed over me, and I let out a quiet breath—but just then, he turned around.

As if he had heard me, he began walking toward me.

“M-Mr. Kang-heon…”

Our gazes met in the air.

And then—

I realized where I was.

A hospital.

“Ah…”

My eyes trembled uncontrollably.

“H-here… no, I mean… the baby…”

Fear surged through me, and I instinctively wrapped my arms tightly around my stomach as I pushed myself upright on the bed.

He said nothing.

He only looked at me.

“…Th-the baby…”

Don’t tell me…

“It’s okay.”

His voice was low.

Usually, that alone would have been enough to calm me.

But this time, even hearing those words, the unease wouldn’t go away.

If everything was okay, then why—why did he look like that?

He looked… troubled. As if something had become a burden.

Was I imagining it?

“The baby is fine.”

He said it again, more firmly this time.

Only then did the strength leave my body, the tension draining all at once.

“I’ll go get the doctor. Just rest.”

Instead of answering, I nodded.

My palms were soaked with sweat. I wiped them roughly against the hospital gown.

At the department store, the pain in my stomach had become unbearable, and I had collapsed. I was usually good at enduring pain, but…that kind of pain was something I had never experienced before.

Mother and Seo-ah must have been so shocked.

I should contact them later.

The sliding door opened, and he walked in with the doctor. It was the same doctor I had seen a few times at the house.

“Hello.”

“Y-yes… h-hello.”

But why did the doctor’s face look so stiff?

A strange unease rose up to my throat.

More than anything, I had always been quick to sense when something bad was coming.

“Your *terus has suddenly become very weak. Has this really only happened today, or have you been having pain before this as well?”

I glanced cautiously at him.

“Th-that… it hu-hurt a little sometimes, but it got be-better quickly… B-but earlier, it hu-hurt so much I co-collapsed…”

After finishing, I stole another glance at him but his expression revealed nothing.

“Did you notice any bleeding?”

“N-no.”

Thinking back, there hadn’t been any bleeding.

“We’ll run a few detailed tests.”

I answered that I understood, but the words your *terus has become weak kept echoing in my ears. My arms, wrapped tightly around my stomach, began to tremble.

I wished he would say something, but he remained silent.

Even the expressions of the doctor and nurses seemed… off.

The more I felt it, the tighter I held my stomach. I tried to steady my thoughts, afraid my anxiety might reach the baby.

While I was being examined, pale as a sheet, he approached.

Without a word, he took my hand firmly.

For some reason, that alone calmed me.

The trembling subsided.

After the tests were done, I waited for the results.

Then the door opened, and the doctor came in.

“Could I… speak with you for a moment?”

If the results were ready, why not just say them here?

Instead, he called him outside.

The two of them stepped out of the room.

I narrowed my eyes, staring at the door they disappeared through.

Something felt wrong.

Was it something I wasn’t supposed to hear?

Swallowing dryly, I removed the IV from the stand and quietly made my way to the door. Beyond the sliding door was a small reception area.

Holding my breath, I listened to their voices from the other side.

“Her *terus is extremely weak. There’s a possibility the mother could be in danger during childbirth.”

“What do you mean? Are you saying she could die?”

“Yes. In the worst-case scenario, both could be at risk.”

My heart dropped.

If I hadn’t misheard—

I bit my lip hard.

“Terminate it.”

The moment his low voice reached my ears, I sucked in a breath.

“Schedule the surgery as soon as possible.”

My hand tightened on the door handle as I pushed it open.

The door slid aside, and both the doctor and him turned to look at me.

“Th-that… wh-what…”

My chest tightened as sorrow surged up.

“Wh-what are you… sa-saying?”

I forced my heavy feet forward until I stood in front of him.

Then I grabbed his arm.

“M-Mr. Kang-heon…?”

Please—tell me I heard wrong. Tell me it’s just because I’m in pain.

I stared at his lips, waiting.

“It’s exactly what you heard.”

As if my hope was ridiculous, he let out a sigh and continued.

“You’re at risk. We’re terminating the baby.”

“Ah… ah…”

I couldn’t breathe.

My whole body trembled.

Clutching my chest as if it might burst, I staggered back.

He reached out to grab me, but I shoved him away with all my strength.

“N-no! I don’t want to! I don’t want to!”

Holding my stomach, pale and shaking, I glared at him.

Sensing the tension, the doctor quietly stepped out.

I didn’t want to cry, but tears poured out like a broken dam.

“It’s… it’s my baby. I k-know you don’t li-like this child, M-Mr. Kang-heon. If you d-don’t want it, I’ll ra-raise it myself.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. Your life is on the line.”

“E-even so… the baby… is li-listening to everything…”

I begged him—almost pleaded—for him to stop saying that, to change his mind.

“Trying to persuade me won’t change anything.”

But he refused, unwavering.

“Hic… p-please… I… I w-want to have this baby. I… I will. It’s my baby. I… I can do it!”

“My decision won’t change.”

How could he be so cold?

How could he… say something like that about his own child—as if it were nothing?

“H-how can you…? The baby is li-listening… how can you say that…?”

“You come first.”

“No! Y-you haven’t even he-heard the baby’s heartbeat, have you? It’s… it’s so strong.”

If he just heard it, maybe he would change his mind—

“A-and… you can se-see the fingers, the toes too…”

I desperately offered to show him the ultrasound photos.

“H-how can you… do this to a ba-baby like that… please… M-Mr. Kang-heon, please…”

I dropped to my knees and clung to his leg. Even if I refused, he was the kind of person who would force the surgery anyway.

Hadn’t he just told the doctor to schedule it as soon as possible?

Panic tightened around my chest.

“Please. Please… let me have this baby. Please. I’ll do anything you say. Anything… so please… our baby… please… please…!”

I had never begged like this before.

Never insisted. Never thrown a tantrum.

I had never wanted anything strongly enough.

I had always given up easily.

But this—this was my child.

I was about to lose my child.

Tears soaked my face as I clung to him, pleading and crying.

“You…”

He let out a sigh and crouched down in front of me, wiping away my tears.

“The baby…”

Sobbing, I grabbed his wrist and pressed my face into his palm.

“I want to have this baby. I can do it.”

With steady eyes and a resolute expression, I looked straight at him.

“…Alright. I’ll talk to the doctor.”

“There’s nothing to talk about. I can do it.”

Relief flooded through me. Only then could I breathe again.

As I struggled to catch my breath, he lifted me and laid me back on the bed. He rehung the IV drip and pulled the blanket up to my neck.

“Stop crying. It’s not good for your body.”

It wasn’t an order—it was gentle. And just like that, my tears stopped.

“I won’t cry. I won’t.”

If he saw my weakness, he might insist on ending the pregnancy again. So I forced myself to hold back the tears.

Compared to protecting my baby, holding back tears was nothing.

Hidden beneath the blanket, I gently rubbed my stomach.

I felt so sorry for my baby.

‘I’m sorry… for being such a weak mother.’

‘I’m sorry I can only protect you like this.’

And with this, I finally understood, he didn’t want the child.

I thought he was just indifferent.

But no.

If he truly decided to, he could take our child away.

My chest felt like it was tearing apart, but my face remained calm.

It had to.

“You’re not stuttering.”

I blinked slowly.

“M-me? Huh?”

It was true.

I wasn’t stuttering anymore.

Until he pointed it out, I hadn’t even realized.

Just now—in my desperation, as I begged him—somehow… it had disappeared. Even after going to the hospital for it, it had never improved.

When I was young, my stepmother had taken me to the hospital once because of my stutter. After that, she never took me again—she said it was embarrassing.

As an adult, I went on my own. I even tried therapy. But nothing changed, so I gave up.

And now, because I had something to protect, something changed.

“Get some rest. I’ll go talk to the doctor.”

“The baby…”

“I said I understand. Just rest.”

I nodded.

He left the room to meet the doctor.

After crying so much, my eyes were swollen, and my throat burned.

“…I really don’t stutter anymore. That’s amazing.”

Even so, I keep wanting to talk.

“Baby… Mommy doesn’t stutter anymore.”

He seems like someone who keeps his promises, so… I don’t have to worry, right?

A quiet sense of pride filled me.

I had protected my baby.

I would receive treatment diligently and make sure to give birth safely.

As I made that vow to myself, the door opened and he walked in.

I quickly studied his expression.

“Stay here until the doctor discharges you.”

“Y-yes. I will.”

Was he also surprised that I wasn’t stuttering anymore?

He stared at my face.

Embarrassed by how messy I must look after crying, I pulled the blanket up to cover everything but my eyes.

He let out a short, incredulous laugh.

“What do you want to eat?”

I had already given up on ever hearing him ask me something like that.

“If there’s something you want, say it.”

For a moment, I was taken aback.

“…Fruit.”

“Fruit?”

I gave a small nod.

“Alright.”

I had only said fruit but he simply agreed.

There are so many kinds of fruit…

Quietly, I watched his back as he turned and left the room.

“Baby… I think Daddy is going to buy us some fruit.”

As if I hadn’t just heard him say he would get rid of the child—

I spoke brightly.