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Ji Wook was drinking water at the sink when Bong Hee came into the kitchen. He straightened up when he saw her. 

“Bong Hee…,” he called carefully.

Bong Hee went straight to the fridge and took out her yogurt. When she turned around, her husband is already behind her.

“Bong Hee…,”he tried again.

She spared him an expressionless glance and just walked past him into her old room. Ji Wook could only scratch the back of his head as he watched her retreating back. 3 days. Bong Hee has been avoiding him for 3 days. She was mad at him at something he did but he did it because he wanted to protect her, especially now she is almost 20 weeks pregnant.

4 days ago

They were cleaning up the dishes and the dining table when Bong Hee’s phone rings.

“Hello,” she answered the phone.

“Hello. I am calling from the police station. Is this Lawyer Eun?” said the person on the other line.

“Yes, I am. What is this about?”

“Do you know Mrs Lee Ha Rim?”

“Yes, I do,” she answered and she heard the phone was handed to another person on the other line.

“Bong Hee…,” Ha Rim sobbed.

“Ha Rim…what happened?” Bong Hee asked worriedly. Ha Rim was one of her childhood friends and they sometimes met each other although both are now leading different lives. Ji Wook walked to Bong Hee, standing in front of her and listening to the conversation as well.

“Bong Hee…help me…,” she sobbed harder.

“I’ll be there shortly, Ha Rim. Calm down,”

Bong Hee ended the call after she spoke to the police officer. 

“I’ll drive you,” her husband said and she nodded.

Once they arrived at the police station, they found out that Ha Rim was there to report her abusive husband, whom is also present. She has been patient and hopeful for the past 3 years of their marriage as well as afraid of the public sentiment about her if she divorced her husband, but now, she couldn’t take it anymore. She has to protect her 1 year old daughter. 

She has brought her daughter to live with her parents since few months ago but that night, he attacked her when she was on the way home. Luckily, a passer-by called the police and they were brought to the police station. Her husband strongly denied Ha Rim accusations saying that they are just having a normal fight between married couple and she is trying to divorce him. He also said that his wife is going after his money because she knew the divorce settlement sum she would get would be huge if the case is against him. He is a successful businessman after all. 

Therefore, Ha Rim needs a lawyer and she only knew Bong Hee. Besides, she’s confident that Bong Hee would not be persuaded by her husband’s money and influence.

Ji Wook knew well that Bong Hee is going to take the case and she is going to give her very best to defend and protect her friend. But, he is not having any of it. She took a similar case before, involving a psycho boyfriend and although it was not serious, she still got injured on her arm. She is now pregnant and he will not agree if she decides to.

The next morning, Bong Hee presented the case to her firm but they have voted that they will not take the case and Bong Hee somehow knew that her husband must have told his father and Lawyer Ji about it. But Ha Rim needs her help and she too can’t bring herself to entrust her friend to some other lawyer or firm. When Ji Wook returned home that evening, she confronted him about it when he entered their room.

“You talked to Mr. Byun and Lawyer Ji, didn’t you?”

“You know why, Bong Hee,” he answered as he removed his jacket and tie.

“I’m fine! I’m not that big yet and I can take care of myself. Ha Rim needs my help,” she persuaded.

“No. I won’t risk your safety. Listen to me on this one, Bong Hee,”he said firmly.

“But why can’t Lawyer Ji take the case?”

“We all knew that you will incorporate yourself and I knew very well what happened to you when a psycho boyfriend or husband involved,”

“But I’m fine aren’t I? I managed to get him arrested,” 

“No, you’re not. He slashed your arm with a knife,”

“It was just a small cut!” she answered exasperatedly.

“No! I’m not taking any risk. End of discussion,”

“Urgh!!” she groaned loudly and moved to went out of the room.

“Where are you going?” Ji Wook asked. 

“Bathroom!” she shouted.

Ji Wook sighed and sat on the edge of the bed. He waited for Bong Hee and hopes to makes her understand how much he wanted to keep her safe, especially now that she’s pregnant. He can see that she is really mad at him and the pregnancy hormones are not helping. However, 20 minutes passed and she hasn’t come back. He grew restless and went to the bathroom, only to found the bathroom empty. He went downstairs and also, she is nowhere to be found. He called her phone and heard her ringtone echoing somewhere in the house, only to found the phone laying beside the sink when he followed the sound.

“Damn it!”

He called his mother-in-law, Ji Hye and Yoo Jung, and reminded them to call him if Bong Hee ever appears in their doorstep. He took his car keys and drove to all her favourite snack stalls, thinking that maybe she went out to buy her midnight snacks. Yet, she is nowhere to be found.

“Where are you Bong Hee….,” he sighed.

He finally decided to just head home and wait for their call.

When he arrived home, the lights were off but he remembers that he left them on when he went out. He ran upstairs to look for Bong Hee but she was not there. He came back down and looked around before he stopped in front of her old room. He turned the doorknob to open the door but it was locked. He breathed a sigh of relief.

“Bong Hee…Open the door…I need to see you…,”he called her softly as he knocked lightly on the door.

Silence.

“Bong Hee…..Jagiya….I was worried…Are you okay?” he tried again.

Silence.

“Bong Hee….I just need to know are you okay?”

“I don’t want to talk to you,” He finally heard her muffled voice from the other side of the door and sighed.

“Bong Hee…Come to bed, please…You know I can’t sleep without you,”

Silence again. 

“Okay…Just go to sleep…We’ll talk tomorrow, okay?”

Still no reply.

“Goodnight Jagiya…”

Meanwhile in the room, Bong Hee was still wide awake. She was still mad at her husband and at the same time, worried about her friend. How is she now? How will she escaped her husband? What about her daughter? With that thought, her hands automatically went to her stomach and gently rubbing it. 

“I’m sorry baby, you won’t be listening to your daddy or feel him tonight. And maybe for few nights. Mommy is really mad at daddy,” she whispered to the darkness.

It has been a routine now, since they found out about the pregnancy, that before they went to sleep, they would cuddle and her husband would be massaging her and talking to her stomach, talking to their baby. His gestures, his voice and his touch, made it easier for her to sleep. 

So that night, up till morning, both Ji Wook and Bong Hee stayed wide awake, staring into the empty space beside them. 

Present

When Bong Hee returned to her room with her yogurt in hand, her phone rings.

“Ha Rim…I’m so sorry…,” Bong Hee answered the call apologetically.

“Bong Hee..what are you talking about? I should be thanking you and your husband!”

“Err..”

“The lawyer your husband introduced was so good that my husband is now agreeing to all of my terms. He even agreed to give me full custody of our daughter. I don’t know what I would do without you! Thank you so much Bong Hee! Thank you!!,” she replied happily and Bong Hee could hear a glint of tear in her voice.

“Erm…you’re welcome. I’m glad everything works out fine,” 

“Please thank your husband for me Bong Hee. I’m forever in debt with you two,”

“No, don’t say that. You deserve this,”

“Thank you again, both of you. Anyway, I don’t want to disturb you anymore. Take care of yourself, okay,”

“Yeah, I will. You too, Ha Rim,”

“Call me if you need anything, Bong Hee. I can’t wait to meet your baby,”

“Me too,” she smiled to herself.

She ended the call after saying their goodbyes and sat on the edge of the bed, pondering on what Ha Rim said. Ji Wook has actually helped Ha Rim all these while but she, on the other hand, was mad at him and ignoring him. She rejected when her husband called and only replied to his messages with a simple Yes or No reply.

“Oh god, I’m such a bad wife,” she said to herself and immediately went out of the room, looking for her husband. Seeing that the house is already dark, she went upstairs, heading to their room.

She quietly opens the door and her husband was lying on the bed, hugging her pillow. 

He immediately sat up when he felt the door opened, and found his wife standing at the doorway. Oh, how he missed her. 

Guilt engulfed her as her husband stared at her with longing and she couldn’t stop her tears from falling. Damn this stupid pregnancy hormone.

“Come here,” Ji Wook called with his arms opened wide.

Bong Hee sobbed louder, closed the door behind her and climbed on the bed to hug her husband. 

“I’m sorry…….!!,” she sobbed.

“Shh…it’s okay…,” he whispered as he hugged her and rubbed the back of her head.

“I’m a bad wife….!,” she sobbed again.

“No. No, you’re not,” he whispered as he pulled away and wiped her tears. “Stop crying..It’s okay,”

“I should’ve listened to you first….I’m sorry…,” 

“It’s okay…I understand…you’re pregnant, so, you’re a bit crazy,”

Bong Hee giggled through her tears and hit his chest lightly. She finally stopped crying.

Ji Wook pulled her so they both lied on the bed, tucking her head under his chin and hugging her tightly.

“Ha Rim called and told me everything. She said thank you,”

Ji Wook smiled.

“I missed you. I can’t sleep for the last 3 days,”

Ji Wook kissed her forehead.

“I missed you too,” as he tipped her chin and kissed her.
Bong Hee pulled him closer by the neck and kissed him back with so much longing.

They pulled away moments later, smiling at each other.

“How are you? How’s our baby?” Ji Wook asked as he moved his hand to rub Bong Hee’s stomach.

“We’re fine,” as she beamed at him.

He moved down to talk to her stomach as Bong Hee lied on her back.

“Did you missed me, baby? Daddy missed you,”

Bong Hee just smiled to herself as she let her husband do whatever he always do. She felt like she's finally back to where she belongs as content and calm filled her. She can also feel herself slowly drifting to sleep and her husband arms around her as she closed her eyes.

“Jagiya..,” she called softly with her eyes closed.

“Hmm?”

“Tteokbukki…later..,”

Ji Wook chuckled and hugged her tighter.

-240518-

A/N :

I know I have been gone for a long time. I went travelling, injured myself in the process, watch concerts, going back home, and coming back to work with a lot to settle. Despite that, I managed to lurk around during the Suspicious Partners anniversary, the Dvdcut and so on, yet, not enough time to write..hehe! Past month has been eventful.