Good Night, Brother! - Chapter 9.5

After the meal, Yi Hyeon brought out a warm cup of chamomile tea, knowing Eunhyun had been avoiding coffee and cold drinks recently. Eunhyun sat, staring blankly at the ripples forming on the tea’s surface each time he blew on it.

Across the table, Yi Hyeon tilted his head, concern flickering in his eyes.

“Hyung, why is your face so red?”

Before Eunhyun could answer, Yi Hyeon reached out and pressed a cool hand against his forehead.

“You’re warm. Do you have a fever?”

“Am I?”

Eunhyun suddenly remembered the doctor mentioning that mild fevers were common during early pregnancy.

“Wait here. I’ll grab the thermometer from your room,” Yi Hyeon said, standing up before Eunhyun could stop him.

Panic surged through Eunhyun as he watched Yi Hyeon stride toward his room.

The pills.

They’re in the drawer with the thermometer.

Realizing his mistake, Eunhyun jumped up, bumping the table. His untouched tea spilled over, streaming onto the floor, but he didn’t care.

As Eunhyun rushed to his room, Yi Hyeon reappeared, holding not the thermometer but the pillbox.

His icy gaze sent a chill down Eunhyun’s spine. Frozen in place, he could only watch as Yi Hyeon approached.

Yi Hyeon placed the pillbox on the table with a loud thud, ignoring the spilled tea.

“Hyung, what are these?”

Yi Hyeon’s habit of asking questions when he already knew the answers had never felt more infuriating.

“Aren’t you going to answer? Or should I just read the box aloud for you?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Eunhyun reached for the pills, but Yi Hyeon snatched them away, shoving the box into his back pocket.

“Nothing? These are for terminating a pregnancy, aren’t they?”

“…”

“You’re pregnant with our baby, aren’t you? Answer me.”

Eunhyun couldn’t meet Yi Hyeon’s piercing gaze and lowered his eyes.

“…Yes.”

“So? You were planning to take these pills and get rid of our baby? Is that it?”

Hearing those words, something inside Eunhyun snapped. Anger surged to the surface, and without thinking, he blurted out, “Don’t be so dramatic. It’s not a baby yet—it’s just a clump of cells.”

Yi Hyeon let out a bitter laugh, his voice icy as he spat back, “A clump of cells? Something made from your DNA and mine is just a clump of cells? So you were going to take pills and dissolve it away?”

“Then what do you expect me to do?!” Eunhyun shouted, his voice echoing through the room.

Yi Hyeon’s eyes widened, and Eunhyun’s trembling voice followed.

“I’m still in my mid-twenties, and you’re barely twenty—a college student! And we’re legally brothers! What are we supposed to do? Are you ready to tell our parents? To handle everything that comes next?”

“I can handle it. All of it.”

Yi Hyeon’s reply was so firm and resolute that Eunhyun was left speechless. How could he always be so sure of himself?

“Do you think I haven’t thought about all of that?” Yi Hyeon continued.

“…”

“I’ve imagined it over and over again—so many times it’s almost sickening. A thousand, ten thousand times. I’ve thought about what would happen if, by some chance, we had a baby.”

“…”

Eunhyun sat frozen, staring at his younger brother kneeling in front of him, hands trembling as they clutched his own. Yi Hyeon’s voice was just as shaky, filled with desperation.

“Hyung… when the baby comes, all you need to do is love them. Feeding, bathing, changing diapers—I’ll do it all. Whatever it takes, I’ll handle it. Please, just trust me, okay?”

How could he? How could he possibly turn Eunhyun’s heart around? Yi Hyeon, who had rarely asked anyone for anything, now felt as though his chest might explode from the suffocating pressure.

“When the baby’s due, I know it’ll be hard on your body. Honestly, I wish you’d quit your job, but… I won’t push you. I know you hate that.”

“…”

“Hyung…”

Eunhyun remained silent for so long that Yi Hyeon, as though he had committed some unforgivable sin, knelt even lower. His pants absorbed the spilled tea on the floor, dark stains spreading across the fabric, but he didn’t seem to notice.

Eunhyun, never having imagined anyone kneeling before him, finally opened his mouth, panic lacing his voice.

“Yi Hyeon, what are you doing? Get up right now.”

But Yi Hyeon didn’t move. Instead, he pressed Eunhyun’s hands to his face, tears streaming as he looked up with pleading eyes. A single tear slid down his cheek, catching the light as it fell.

Damn it. Yi Hyeon was too unfair. That face, those eyes, those tears—it wasn’t fair.

“I can do this, Hyung. I promise I’ll be good at it. Just believe in me, okay?”

“…”

“I know it’s hard on your body, and I know it’s selfish of me to ask this, but… can’t you think about it just one more time?”

“…”

“I’ll talk to Mom and Dad. I’ll convince them. Just… please…”

Tears clung to Yi Hyeon’s lashes, shimmering like dew as he begged so earnestly. How could anyone say no to such a face? Eunhyun knew, deep down, that he was destined to lose this battle.

A truth he had long ignored suddenly struck him, and Eunhyun’s brows furrowed as he finally spoke, his voice low and pained.

“Yi Hyeon…”

Yi Hyeon looked up at him with an expression of desperate hope, as though awaiting judgment.

“If Mom and Dad tell us to get rid of it… I will. I can’t go against them. I don’t have it in me.”

Yi Hyeon’s face darkened briefly with despair, but then Eunhyun added softly, “So… try your best to convince them.”

And just like that, hope flickered back into Yi Hyeon’s eyes.

“Hyung…”

Yi Hyeon shuffled closer on his knees and wrapped Eunhyun in a tight embrace. His face pressed against Eunhyun’s stomach—where the baby rested—and the warmth of his forehead and the bridge of his nose spread through the fabric of Eunhyun’s shirt. Yi Hyeon was crying so much that the hem of the shirt quickly grew damp with tears.

“Thank you, Hyung. Thank you so much…”

The raw emotion in Yi Hyeon’s trembling voice sent a tear trailing silently down Eunhyun’s cheek.

Time passed, and their breathing slowly steadied. The tears stopped, leaving only a tense silence between them.

Eunhyun gently freed his hand and began stroking Yi Hyeon’s soft hair. Finally, Yi Hyeon looked up, his tear-streaked face breaking into a bittersweet smile—a mix of relief, joy, and lingering sadness.

“Yi Hyeon, get up now.”

Yi Hyeon nodded and stood slowly, but as soon as he straightened, he wobbled and grabbed onto a nearby chair for support.

“What’s wrong?” Eunhyun asked.

“My legs fell asleep,” Yi Hyeon admitted sheepishly.

“You idiot…”

Despite the exasperated look Eunhyun shot him, Yi Hyeon grinned, flashing his teeth brightly. The grin soon turned into quiet laughter, his shoulders shaking as he tried to stifle it.

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