Perfect Possession - Episode 88

Reluctantly giving up his seat, Jaehoon stood with his arms crossed, a worried look on his face. Mi-ryung watched him, reflecting on how much he had changed and how much he loved Seo-yeon, and she was reminded of her past. She felt envious, but also grateful that her son, whom she had given birth to, had grown up so well, which surprised her.

 

‘Is it thanks to Father and Mother?’

 

Mi-ryung offered her first words of gratitude to her in-laws, whom she had often criticized for being stuffy and out of touch with the world. She turned her gaze to Jae-moon, watching him examine Seo-yeon. She sincerely hoped it was nothing serious.

 

“Do you feel cold?”

 

“No.”

 

“Is your stomach still upset?”

 

“No. Honestly, I enjoyed lunch. I didn’t overeat, so my stomach felt fine.”

 

“So, the sudden nausea and vomiting came out of nowhere?”

 

“That’s…”

 

Seo-yeon looked at Mi-ryung, who nodded as if to say it was okay to speak. Seo-yeon found it difficult to say that she found the scent of the tea, which had been brought out as a fine offering, repulsive.

 

“I didn’t like the smell of the green tea. Suddenly, I felt nauseous and my stomach…”

 

Seo-yeon stopped mid-sentence. In that instant, one fact flashed through her mind. She slowly looked at Jaehoon. Jaehoon, who had been meeting her gaze with a nervous look, quickly approached, pushed Jae-moon aside, and grabbed Seo-yeon’s shoulders.

 

“Why? Are you feeling really bad? Jae-moon, let’s go to the hospital.”

 

“Calm down, buddy.”

 

“Can you say that looking at Seo-yeon’s face? Seo-yeon…”

 

“Jaehoon.”

 

Seo-yeon interrupted Jaehoon, who was out of his mind, and called out to him.

 

“Why?”

 

“I… I don’t know for sure, but I don’t think I’m sick.”

 

“You don’t think so?”

 

“Well…”

 

Seo-yeon hesitated for a moment, wondering if this was something that Jaehoon and she should confirm privately first, but she realized that the situation didn’t allow for it. She decided that she needed to reassure Jaehoon first and continued speaking.

 

“Well, I think we need to check if I’m pregnant first.”

 

Just now, Seo-yeon had remembered that her period, which had always been regular without needing to be marked on a calendar, had skipped last month.

 

“Huh?”

 

As expected, Jaehoon repeated the word blankly, as if hearing it for the first time. He had been singing about having a second child, but the place and time made it seem like an unexpected thing to hear. Of all the places, he couldn’t have imagined hearing the words “I might be pregnant” inside Mi-ryung’s art gallery. Usually, he had imagined Seo-yeon saying “Ta-da!” and “I think I’m pregnant,” and he would cheer and shout for joy. For that, his own home would be the most suitable place. So, Jaehoon, like a fool, wore a dumbfounded expression and asked back what she meant.

 

Seo-yeon couldn’t help but laugh at Jaehoon’s expression.

 

“I said, I think we need to check if I’m pregnant first.”

 

Seo-yeon whispered softly into Jaehoon’s ear.

 

“I skipped last month.”

 

“Ah… Just, just a minute. So, you, you mean you might be pregnant?”

 

Jaehoon was stuttering, which was a first for Seo-yeon, and she couldn’t help but smile.

 

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard you stutter before.”

 

“Me neither.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

Mi-ryung’s clearing of her throat probably meant something along the lines of “Me too.”

 

“How can I not stutter in a situation like this? Really? Are you really pregnant?”

 

“I said I might be pregnant. Don’t get too excited. You might be disappointed.”

 

“What does that matter? Jae-moon.”

 

Jaehoon called out to Jae-moon and helped Seo-yeon up.

 

“Okay, okay. Let’s go to the hospital first.”

 

Jaehoon stared intently at Seo-yeon, then, overwhelmed with emotion, he hugged her tightly.

 

“Ah, damn it. Why does it have to be?”

 

Jaehoon’s unspoken words were probably “Why do you have to say something like that here where I can’t do anything?” He buried his face in Seo-yeon’s neck and remained motionless for a while. Seo-yeon knew exactly what he was thinking.

 

Jaehoon hadn’t been able to share the moment of Tae-yul’s first kick or his birth. He was probably feeling both excited about the miracle of another child and sorry towards Tae-yul at the same time.

 

Seo-yeon gently stroked Jaehoon’s back.

 

“It’s okay.”

 

“…Seo-yeon.”

 

“We’re doing well. Tae-yul will be happy too. Before that.”

 

“Before what?”

 

Jaehoon lifted his head, his eyes filled with emotion and bloodshot, and looked at Seo-yeon.

 

“We need to go to the hospital and find out if I’m really pregnant. Our emotionally charged chairman.”

 

“Hahaha, Jaehoon, you got one from Seo-yeon.

 

Behind Jae-moon’s loud laughter, Mi-ryung’s soft clearing of her throat was heard again.

 

“Let’s go. Let’s celebrate just the two of us again when we get back.”

 

Jaehoon gently hugged Seo-yeon and let her go. Seo-yeon winked at Jaehoon to let him know she understood and turned her gaze to Mi-ryung. She approached Mi-ryung, who was standing there blankly.

 

“Mother, if you don’t have any other plans this afternoon, would you like to come with us? It might not be, but just in case.”

 

She didn’t know why she felt that way, but Seo-yeon wanted to go to the hospital with Mi-ryung.

 

“Would it be okay for me to come along?”

 

“I would be grateful if you would come with us.”

 

Mi-ryung turned her gaze to Jaehoon. He looked at Mi-ryung and said quietly.

 

“Please do.”

 

Only after Jaehoon gave his permission did Mi-ryung look down at Seo-yeon’s hand. She wanted to hold that hand, but no matter how much she thought about it, she didn’t feel like she deserved it.

 

Seo-yeon’s gaze followed Mi-ryung’s down, and she took her hand first.

 

“Let’s go, Mother. Jaehoon has been singing about wanting a daughter. I hope it’s really a girl.”

 

“Well… it’s not something you can control, but if I’m given the chance, I would like a granddaughter too.”

 

Happiness was a great medicine for forgiving someone. Seo-yeon was so happy that she couldn’t ignore Mi-ryung’s regret. She linked arms with Mi-ryung and headed to the hospital.

 

***

 

“Mommy, does your tummy hurt?”

 

Tae-yul asked, pressing his ear close to Seo-yeon’s belly. His eyes, still wide with surprise at the baby’s kick inside her womb, were so wide they looked like they would roll out.

 

“No.”

 

“You’re lying.”

 

“Hyang is just playing.”

 

“Weally? Tae-yul wants to pway togeder too.”

 

Seo-yeon smiled gently and stroked the back of Tae-yul’s handsome head, who couldn’t take his face off her belly. Now that she was over six months pregnant, her belly had started to show noticeably. As soon as Tae-yul woke up in the morning, he would run to the bedroom to find Seo-yeon. He said he came to ask if his sibling had slept well, and Jaehoon was the same way.

 

Seo-yeon joked that Hyang would get flattened from all the times they put their ears or faces on her belly.

 

“Mommy, is Tae-yul gonna be an obba?”

 

“When Hyang is born, Tae-yul will be an older brother.”

 

When it was time to find out the gender, Jaehoon couldn’t resist asking the doctor if it was a girl. The doctor replied, “It’s very pink.” Jaehoon retorted, “We’re always pink. So, is it a girl?” which made the nurse cover her mouth and laugh.

 

“Tae-yul, it’s almost time for Daddy to come home…”

 

“I’m home.”

 

“Oh, it’s Daddy.”

 

Only then did Tae-yul take his face off Seo-yeon’s belly and run out of the living room. These days, Jaehoon only worked mornings and went straight home if there was nothing urgent. He didn’t want to miss a single moment, so he stayed by Seo-yeon and Hyang’s side. Jaehoon was disappointed that she didn’t have much morning sickness, so he didn’t have to run out in the middle of the night to buy her what she wanted. So, the first thing he said when he saw Seo-yeon was…

 

“Seo-yeon, I’m home. Is there anything you want to eat?”

 

Jaehoon handed his jacket to the housekeeper and headed straight for Seo-yeon.

 

“Well, there is something I want to eat. I don’t know if you’ll be able to go buy it?”

 

“What is it? Of course, I’ll go. I can go to the ends of the earth.”

 

Jaehoon high-fived Tae-yul and rejoiced at the mention of something she wanted to eat.

 

“Tae-yul go buy Mommy want eat too.”

 

“Of course, Older Brother has to go. Hyang wants to eat it.”

 

Watching Jaehoon, who was as happy as a child, Seo-yeon leaned back comfortably on the sofa. She had done prenatal Pilates all morning, so her body felt relaxed.

 

“What do you want to eat?”

 

“Well, it’s something that goes perfectly with this season, but it might not be available.”

 

“What is it?”

 

Jaehoon urged Seo-yeon, impatient to wait. To be honest, Seo-yeon didn’t really want to eat anything in particular. Then, as she looked out the window, she suddenly thought of the Hotteok and Bungeoppang that were sold in front of the school gate when she was in college. The husband sold Hotteok, and the wife sold Bungeoppang. Their Hotteok and Bungeoppang were so delicious that they were known as a local delicacy. It had been almost 10 years, and Seo-yeon didn’t know if they were still in business there.

 

“Hotteok and Bungeoppang. A couple used to sell them in front of the university I went to. But I guess they’re not there anymore?”

 

“The university you went to, you mean S University?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Wait. I’ll go get them.”

 

“I’m telling you, they might not be selling them anymore?”

 

“If they’re not selling them, I’ll make them sell them. Wait. I’ll definitely buy Hotteok and Bungeoppang made by that couple.”

 

Jaehoon said to Seo-yeon with an almost determined expression. Tae-yul, who was looking up at Jaehoon next to him, tilted his head and said, “Fish? Bread?”

 

Seo-yeon kissed him and watched Jaehoon take Tae-yul outside, saying loudly, “Just come back if they’re not there,” but he didn’t even pretend to hear her. She smiled gently and decided to wait comfortably. If they weren’t there, there was nothing Jaehoon could do about it.