(A week later)

—Taemin’s POV—

“Taeminnie, wake up! Remember what we’re supposed to do today?” hyung asked in a whisper. I cracked open an eyelid and tried to absorb my surroundings. Why is it so dark? What time is it now? I need my rest, hyung.

I pulled the blanket back up to my chin. Hyung shook me again and I groaned in annoyance. Hyung pulled the blanket down and clasped his hand over my mouth, putting his finger to his lips. Why do I have to be so quiet? I mean sure, it’s like past midnight, but we’ve been noisier.

“You honestly don’t remember?” hyung asked. I looked at him, dumbfounded, and shook my head. Hyung sighed and took his hand away. I can breathe!

“It’s Key’s birthday today. Jonghyun told us to set everything up by morning. Umma’s taken a day off and appa obviously doesn’t have to work. The only one in bed right now is you and Key, and you have to come prepare with us. The rest of Key’s close friends will come over at 5am and finish up. Come on,” hyung reminded me.

Key umma’s birthday? I gasped and shot up into a sitting position, suddenly wide awake. How could I have forgotten that we need to help out? I rushed to the toilet to briefly wash up and ran downstairs while holding the handrail. Behind me, hyung took his own sweet time to get to the kitchen.

“Umma, appa, I’m sorry that I forgot about the preparations,” I apologised. Umma shook her head and smiled warmly at me, gesturing at the balloons at the side.

“You could always start now. Jonghyun’s over at his own house, baking a cake for Kibum. Jinki will put the decorations up while you blow these balloons. Don’t overwork yourself. After you’re done with that, just help Jinki. By that, I meant pass the decorations to him. Hurry along now,” umma instructed. I took a brief glance at the wall clock in the kitchen. It’s now exactly 4am. By the time Key umma’s friends come over, we’d have finished doing everything!

Oh, and Onew hyung’s arm was no longer in a cast – thank god – and he could use it freely now!

I grabbed the packet of balloons and headed over to the couch, starting to blow them one by one. There has got to be at least thirty balloons in here! By the time I’m done, my lungs are going to be busted. Good luck to me!

On the other side of the living room, hyung was putting up some decorations on the ceiling. There were the standard strings of confetti and also the piece of cardboard that read ‘Happy Birthday, Kibum-ah! May all your wishes come true!’ I question where they got it though. Why would people sell these with a specific name?

After I finished blowing the third balloon, I just decided to take a break and lied down on the couch. There are… Yeah, I was right. Twenty-seven more balloons and I’ll be done.

I kept blowing and blowing balloons, stopping for a break every time I blew five or so balloons. By the time it was 5am and Key umma’s close friends did come over, I was left with two balloons to blow. And who exactly came? Let’s see.

I went over to the door where someone had knocked a few times lightly. I twisted the doorknob slowly and let the door open slightly, revealing a small group of idols.

There was Sungjong, Myungsoo hyung, Sungyeol hyung, Chunji, L.Joe, Nicole noona, Amber noona, Krystal, Yoona noona, Kevin hyung, Kiseop hyung, Hyunseung hyung and Junhyung hyung. That suddenly doesn’t seem like such a small group. Thirteen people in total, then. I let them in.

“Good… morning, I guess?” Yoona noona was unsure of how to greet. I smiled and waved to them before leading them into the kitchen where umma and appa were. The thirteen of them had wanted to greet like how a band would – together, on cue, and loudly. I had to stop them before they could wake Key umma up.

“Shh. Just greet softly,” I told them. They looked at me sheepishly and nodded, settling for a quiet ‘Good morning, uncle and aunty’. I went back to the couch and they followed me like I was their leader. Aish, these people.

“Guys, just help hyung out. Someone can take over for me too. I’ve been blowing balloons for the past hour,” I complained. Sungjong beamed and nodded, grabbing the last two balloons and blowing them up enthusiastically. There is something very wrong with this kid.

I walked over to hyung and looked up at him. He was standing on a tall stool that’s about a metre tall so it’s kind of messing around with my ability to look at hyung properly.

“Hyung,” I called out. Hyung stopped what he was doing and looked at me, smiling at me.

“Ne?”

“Can you let the others do this? I want to get some rest,” I whined. Hyung chuckled softly and nodded, pointing at the bunch of confetti that he was putting up.

“After this, ok?” I grinned and nodded, waiting patiently for hyung to finish sticking that bunch of confetti onto the ceiling. He got off the stool carefully and gave some simple instructions to the others before he pulled my hand and brought me back to our room, informing umma and appa that we were going to rest for a while.

-------------------------------------------

On the way up, I thought of something. Kevin hyung and Kiseop hyung can just take over the food prep, and umma and appa can rest. They can, right? I mean they’ve been on ‘Chef’s Kiss’ after all; if they can’t whip up a few dishes, they’ll be letting their teacher down.

I decided that I was too lazy to walk back down, so I texted Kevin hyung and told him to take over the food prep from appa and umma, along with Kiseop hyung of course. Kevin hyung gladly obliged and replied, telling me that appa and umma had retired to their rooms. I heard their room door shut and smiled in satisfaction, closing my room door as well.

I was walking back to our bed when I suddenly felt a pain in my lower abdomen. The triplets are kicking again. Well, one of them, anyways. I winced and held my stomach, taking smaller steps since even walking is painful. Hyung noticed my discomfort and came over to help me to bed.

“Did something happen?” hyung asked worriedly. I bit my lower lip and shook my head.

“They’re just kicking,” I assured him. I’m sure I wasn’t really convincing since I winced again and hyung rubbed my stomach, getting off the bed to be at eye level with my belly. I laughed softly at his actions, momentarily distracted from the kids’ kicking.

Hyung pulled the hem of my shirt up and told me to hold it, and I did. The next thing was did was just plain unexpected. He began kissing my stomach and stopped after a few minutes. He began speaking, then.

“Kids, how many times do I have to tell you to be obedient and stop kicking your umma?” hyung chided. I giggled and whacked his head. Hyung looked up at me, acting like he was hurt.

“If they don’t kick, then I’ll be worried. Besides, they stopped kicking the moment your lips landed on my stomach. You’re a miracle worker,” I told hyung and kissed him. He gladly returned the kiss and pushed me down onto bed, putting his arms on both sides of my face.

“I get that a lot. Come here,” he told me and continued kissing me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, kissing him back. I could really feel hyung’s love pouring out with every kiss that he gave, and I felt like I was on cloud nine.

I was snapped out of my thoughts as hyung suddenly bit my lower lip. I gasped and he slipped his tongue in expertly, exploring my mouth slowly. This isn’t the first time we’ve kissed like this, but I always seem to be caught off guard when we do.

Hyung ended up lying down, and I was on my side as well. We didn’t break the kiss at any moment in time. We finally broke apart for a few seconds, but that was a mere few seconds. I barely caught my breath before hyung captured my lips in another breath taking kiss.

However, today seems to be different. Hyung was slowly taking my maternity dress off, probably thinking that I won’t notice. The cold air of the room hit my body and I shivered, looking up at hyung in fear. I can’t do this, not just yet.

“H-hyung…” I pushed him away and snatched my dress from him.

“I… I’m sorry, Tae. I didn’t mean to,” hyung apologised, his face full of guilt. I shook my head and held back the tears that had been threatening to fall. It isn’t hyung’s fault, I know. I just don’t think I’m ready for this. I haven’t overcome my fear of yet.

“It’s alright. Maybe next time,” I told him and smiled weakly. I felt another light kick and sighed, rubbing my swollen belly protectively. Kids, I know that you want umma to move on, but I can’t. Not now. I know that hyung will never hurt me. There’s just this fear somewhere in the back of my head.

Hyung dressed me and lied down beside me, pulling the blankets up and setting the alarm. He turned and pressed a kiss onto my forehead, and I sighed in contentment. Hyung wrapped an arm around me and I automatically turned to face him, hugging him like a bolster. I would love to throw my leg over him, but I’ll feel bad for hyung.

“Sleep well, Tae. I’m sorry,” hyung whispered, kissing me again before he let himself fall asleep. I sighed and nodded, hugging hyung just that bit tighter. I closed my eyes and let sleep overtake me.

------------------------------------

A few hours later, I was woken up by hyung shaking me lightly. He kissed my forehead and smiled at me. He still had that look of guilt on his face. I remembered what he tried to do to me before I fell asleep and sighed. It wasn’t his fault.

Again, the kids began kicking and I grit my teeth to bear with the pain. I wanted to stand up and go to the toilet to wash up, but one of them kicked again and I just fell back down onto our bed. Hyung managed to catch my arm and hold me up, looking at me worriedly.

“What happened?” hyung asked. I just smiled at him and shook my head, not wanting him to worry too much. Hyung frowned, obviously not liking that I was hiding things from him.

“Tell me the truth, Taeminnie,” hyung warned.

“Fine. The kids are kicking again,” I admitted and caressed my belly. Aish, you three… Can you stop kicking me for today, please? I know you’re tired but I am too.

Hyung sat down beside me and rubbed my belly lovingly. He pecked my forehead and pulled me into a tight hug, resting his chin on my shoulder. I heard him sniffling and I widened my eyes. Is hyung crying? But why would he?

“I’m sorry for earlier on, and I’m sorry for not being able to protect you from Minho,” hyung apologised while sobbing. He’s still not over that? Is he for real?

“Hyung, look at me,” I broke the hug and held him by his shoulders so that he was keeping eye contact with me. “Do I look unhappy? Yes, it’s a little annoying when the kids kick me,” I said, stopping when I felt another kick. Oh you rebellious triplets. What am I going to do with you?

“I am definitely happy though,” I finished and grinned, kissing hyung fully on the lips before I skipped off to the toilet. Before I went in, I looked at hyung again. “If I didn’t have these kids, what would I be doing now?” I asked and entered the toilet.

I brushed my teeth quickly, having noted that it was already 8am and Key umma might already be awake. I can’t believe that I slept for three hours! It felt like minutes, honestly.

I finished wiping my face and walked out of the toilet. Hyung had made sure that he looked alright while I was in the toilet. We went downstairs together, our hands intertwined.

I looked around and realised that Key umma wasn’t there yet. I thought he usually wakes up at 7am or something. Why is he suddenly sleeping in? Strange.

“That’s cause Jonghyun usually wakes Key up. He isn’t a heavy sleeper, but he likes sleep just as much as anyone else,” hyung told me. I thought aloud again? I thought that phase was over.

We gathered everyone in the living room. Appa and umma were already awake as well.

“Good morning!” I greeted them cheerfully. They greeted me back and started to explain the plan for later. Apparently, I would wake Key umma up and bring him down, pretending as if nothing was planned. Well, he’ll be at the top of the stairs when Kevin hyung comes out and covers his eyes, leading him down slowly. We’d all get ready to sing the birthday song and we’ll just play around.

We got into our respective positions and I began to make my way up. I opened Key umma’s door slowly and peeked through the small gap in the door. Key umma, as expected, is sleeping peacefully. Well, he does look unglamorous but who doesn’t?

I tiptoed to his bed and tapped Key umma’s shoulder lightly.

“Key umma, wake up. Jonghyun hyung’s out, so he instructed me to wake you up. Wake up~!” I sang and kept shaking Key umma. He groaned and turned to his other side, making me sigh. There is only one thing to do when Key umma behaves like this.

I slapped him, waiting for the cussing that would come just moments later.

“WHAT THE ?!” he screeched. “WHY THE BLOODY HELL WOULD YOU SLAP MY BEAUTIFUL FACE?! DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT TAKES TO MAINTAIN THIS LEVEL OF BEAUTY? DO YOU?!”

I sighed.

“Key umma, it’s just me. Jonghyun hyung went out a while ago and told me to wake you up. You refused to wake up, so I had to slap you. Unlike Jonghyun hyung, I will not use skinship to wake you up,” I told him. He stared at me blankly and nodded.

“I get it. It’s not the first time you’ve slapped me to wake me up anyways. What time is it?” he asked calmly, walking around the room to pick up some stuff that he’d require to wash up. Mainly he took all his cosmetics.

We walked to the toilet and I waited for him outside as he took his own sweet time to wash up. Kevin hyung frowned at me.

‘Shouldn’t you have just brought him down?’ he mouthed. I shook my head.

‘He wanted to wash up!’ I replied silently. I heard the doorknob turn and I shooed Kevin hyung away, spinning around and facing Key umma brightly.

“You’re done? Go keep your stuff and we’ll eat. I’m starving!” I whined and pushed him back to his room. After he put all his cosmetics back in their original places, I went downstairs with him.

Once we arrived at the stairs, Kevin hyung walked behind Key umma and covered his eyes. Kevin hyung giggled cutely when Key umma slapped his hands, indirectly slapping himself. We laughed silently while walking downstairs, being careful to ensure that Key umma wouldn’t fall.

We finally reached the bottom of the stairs and Kevin hyung let go of his hands.

Key umma turned around to face us.

“Why you little…”

“Turn around dammit!” I told him angrily. Key umma stared at me and did as told. As expected, he gasped in shock and covered his mouth with his hand. In front of him stood Jonghyun hyung who was holding the cake that he had baked. The other guests were surrounding him, and we joined them quickly.

We sang the birthday song loudly and clapped at the end of it. Key umma was tearing up and he cried tears of joy, hugging Jonghyun hyung tightly. Jonghyun hyung was startled and nearly dropped the cake, but Amber noona managed to take it from him before it dropped.

“Thanks guys,” Key umma said gratefully while crying. He wiped his tears away and kissed Jonghyun hyung. They were engaged in a make out session, but we decided not to interfere this time. It is Key umma’s birthday, after all.

--------------------------------------------

The doorbell rang about an hour later, and I skipped over to the door happily, knowing who it was. Key umma looked at me as if I were mad, eating some pizza that Kevin hyung and Kiseop hyung had made. I turned the doorknob and grinned down at the little kid in front of me.

“Taemin appa!” he hugged my leg while smiling. I patted his head and bent down to carry him, thanking his umma for bringing him here. She nodded and smiled at me warmly, telling me to take care of her son and myself before she left.

“Key appa! Onew appa! Jonghyun appa!” he shouted.

“Yoogeun-ah!” Key umma exclaimed happily and took Yoogeun from my arms. “I missed you~,” Key umma cooed and kissed Yoogeun’s forehead. Everyone came over and began crowding around us, interested in the arrival of a six-year-old kid.

Yoogeun looked around him and hid his face in Key umma’s chest, being shy to strangers as he usually was. I still remember how he reacted to us when he first met us. Ah, the good old times.

Jonghyun hyung shooed everyone away but me and Onew hyung. We sat down on the couch and Yoogeun sat between Key umma and me. He pointed to my stomach and looked at me cutely.

“Taemin appa, you’ve grown fatter,” he told me and stuck his tongue out at me. I smiled at him and shook my head. What? There isn’t any use crying over something like this cause Yoogeun doesn’t know much about the world. He’s only six, after all.

“No, Yoogeun. There are three little babies growing in Taemin appa’s stomach and they’ll be your dongsaengs, so you have to take good care of them when they’re born, arasso?” Onew hyung explained gently. Yoogeun’s eyes literally sparkled and he nodded cheerfully.

“Ne! I’ll be a hyung or oppa!” he exclaimed happily. We laughed at his cuteness and decided to introduce everyone to him. I mean most of them probably know Yoogeun already, from when we did ‘Hello Baby S2’ almost three years ago.

“Yoogeun-ah, do you know who these hyungs and noonas are?” Key umma asked, pointing at the thirteen people who were gathered in front of us. He nodded.

“This is Amber noona, Krystal noona, Sungjong hyung, Myungsoo hyung, Sungyeol hyung, Chunji hyung, L.Joe hyung, Nicole noona, Yoona noona, Kevin hyung, Kiseop hyung, Hyunseung hyung and Junhyung hyung,” he listed out, looking at me for confirmation.

“That’s right Yoogeun! Aigo, our son is so smart,” I praised and patted his head. He grinned at me in satisfaction and Sungjong walked towards Yoogeun.

“Yoogeun-ah, I’m the same age as your Taemin appa, but you can call me Sungjong hyung alright?” Sungjong asked, doing his standard aegyo. Yoogeun thought about it and shook his head.

“Ani! I’ll call you Sungjong ahjusshi!” Yoogeun replied. Sungjong looked at Yoogeun, pretending to be hurt by his words. Hey, I’m going to be a real umma and I’m the same age as you, Jongie. Don’t be so shocked about Yoogeun calling you an ahjusshi.

“Why?” Sungjong asked. Oh Sungjong, stop acting cute in front of Yoogeun.

“Because you’re the same age as Taemin appa and he’s my appa, so you’re an ahjusshi!” Yoogeun reasoned. We all gave Yoogeun a thumbs-up for his wonderful logic while Sungjong just pouted and went to find Myungsoo hyung for comfort.

“Come on Yoogeun, we’ll go to my room. Key, happy birthday again and have fun,” Onew hyung said and took Yoogeun’s hand. Key umma nodded and smiled, waving us off. I took Yoogeun’s other hand and we walked up the stairs together.

------------------------------------

“Taemin appa, can I listen to your babies?” Yoogeun asked me. I shrugged and gestured for him to come over to me, pulling my shirt up. Damn the room is cold right now. Well… the air-con is on and it’s autumn right now.

Yoogeun put his ear to my belly and a shiver ran up my spine. His ear feels… hmm… Warm. It’s kind of weird to have a kid’s ear pressed against your bare stomach ok? Just to clarify.

One of the kids kicked and Yoogeun jumped in shock.

“Taemin appa, what happened?” he asked.

I explained how unborn babies who reached a certain age are able to kick and Yoogeun was pretty much awed. On the other hand, Onew hyung just back hugged me while I leaned against his warmth. It was nice having someone here for you.

“Ah… That’s so cool! I want to have babies too!” Yoogeun exclaimed excitedly.

“Ne, Yoogeun. You can have kids with your wife when you grow up, ok?” I told him. He nodded furiously, showing me a toothy grin. I just realised that one of his front tooth is missing.

“Yoogeun, what happened to your front tooth?” I asked curiously.

“Chaewoon noona was playing with me and I fell down. My mouth hit the floor and bang! My tooth fell off…” Yoogeun answered sadly. I looked at Onew hyung and he nodded. I got off the bed and squatted so that I was at eye-level with Yoogeun.

“Yoogeun-ah, your tooth will grow back. You just have to take good care of it this time, arasso?” I told him, smiling at him. He nodded and smiled lightly.

“Kamsa hamnida, Taemin appa,” Yoogeun said and tiptoed to kiss my forehead.

“Yoogeun-ah, let’s go downstairs ok? Have you eaten?” Onew hyung asked. Yoogeun shook his head and his stomach growled. My stomach growled at the same time as Yoogeun’s, and the three of us burst into a fit of laughter.

After we stopped laughing, we went downstairs to grab some food. I haven’t eaten lunch yet, and neither has hyung. According to Yoogeun, he ate a late breakfast, so he hasn’t had his lunch yet either. And heck, I am starving.

On the way down, I suddenly felt like eating banana ice-cream and some rice cake. I made sure that we were on the ground level and that Key umma was taking care of Yoogeun before I grabbed onto hyung’s arm. He turned to me, raising a brow.

“Hyung, I want strawberry ice-cream and rice cake,” I whined and pouted. Hyung looked at the clock and nodded, racing upstairs to grab his wallet and running back down. He slammed the door open and ran out of the house, saying that he’d be back in fifteen minutes.

I headed over to where the others were and sat down on the floor. They were discussing something, but I’m not too sure about what it is. It was about their recent schedules or something.

“You know, we’re supposed to head over for Inkigayo,” Hyunseung hyung mentioned. Nicole noona, Junhyung hyung, Chunji and L.Joe all widened their eyes in shock. They jumped out of their seats and said goodbye to me before going off to find Key umma.

“They’re forgetful. And what made their managers let them come, anyways?” Amber noona questioned. We turned to face her.

“Hyunseung hyung can be very scary when he’s mad,” Sungyeol hyung told her. The rest of us nodded in agreement, all having seen that scene before. Amber noona widened her eyes and just nodded.

“As for ChunJoe, I’m sure Byunghun managed to get their manager to say yes. Besides, they have the backing of Ricky who is scary when pissed off,” Sungjong explained.

“And Nicole? Let’s just say that Key has a unique way of getting people to agree with him, and she used that as an excuse,” Kiseop hyung decided. We all nodded. I still remember Key umma exploding at me and Kevin hyung earlier on cause we surprised him.

“How’re you doing?” Krystal asked, referring to me with my pregnancy.

“It’s not that bad. Hyung helps me out with almost everything, and he just went out to get rice cake and strawberry ice-cream for me,” I smiled at the thought of hyung rushing out of the house to get me what I wanted.

“But are you mentally fine with it? I mean the children are…” Yoona noona trailed off. I sighed. Does everyone have to think that I’d hate my kids just because of their father?

“You know, I’m not that shallow. Sure, I hate Minho, but I won’t hate my kids for that,” I told them in frustration. Sungjongie moved beside me and patted my back, trying to calm me down. I smiled at him in thanks and he pumped his fist.

“Then what are your plans for them?” Kevin hyung asked.

I was about to speak when Myungsoo hyung stopped me, mouthing that he’d help me explain. Thanks Myung hyung. I appreciate it a lot. Over time, it gets annoying when people keep asking the same questions.

Myungsoo hyung explained everything about how I was going to give them their surnames based on gender, and that they’d all stay with me but Minho would get his visiting rights. Also, they’d grow up with Onew hyung as their appa as well.

Once Myungsoo hyung finished explaining everything, I heard the door open. I grinned widely and rushed out to greet Onew hyung. I took the bags of food from him and hugged him tightly, completely ignoring the fact that he was sweaty as hell.

I kissed hyung on the lips and thanked him, leading him to the sofa so that he could rest.

“You could have asked for something that was more easily bought. I exceeded the time limit by four minutes!” hyung exclaimed. I chuckled and shook my head, pecking his forehead again.

“It’s alright hyung. Thank you and I love you,” I kissed him again and went to grab a spoon before eating the rice cake and ice-cream together. I offered some to hyung and he gladly ate it, commenting that it didn’t taste half bad.

Of course we went to get proper food, but I finished the huge tub of ice-cream and big packet of rice cakes with hyung in a half hour.

--------------------------------------

“Bye and thanks for coming! And Mrs. Jung, thank you so much for bringing Yoogeun over. You have no idea how much we’ve missed him!” Key umma said gratefully. Everyone was leaving since it was already 5pm and they’d been here for half a day already.

When everybody was gone, Key umma closed the door and turned to us.

“Thanks too, guys. As for Jonghyun, you’ll be getting your thanks later on at night,” Key umma winked. Tonight is going to be long.

I only slept for a total of eight hours and it wasn’t even eight continuous hours! I’ll go to bed now.

I tugged on hyung’s arm and he understood what I wanted, following me up to our room. I lay down in bed after changing into a fresh set of clothes. Hyung changed as well and lay down beside me.

“Tae, good night. Or rather, good evening,” hyung chuckled at his own mistake. He pressed his lips onto my crown and pulled the blankets up to our chins. I hugged him as a bolster as usual.

“I love you hyung,” I told him in a whisper and I just fell asleep.

The last thing I heard was hyung’s reply.

“Love you too.”

Does this make any sense to you guys? I have no idea what happened :/

Ok, so I was gonna post this on Sat but AFF was down and I didn't have internet connection yst. So sorry! ><

Did you guys enjoy this? The next chapter will include Minho again~

I nearly made this into a ty chappie but since this fic is supposed to be pure, as mentioned in the previous A/N, I shall post on another fic :) And besides, I probably won't be writing any for this.

This fic is coming to an end soon. I don't quite know how to extend it cause there isn't really much to write... There should be at least three more chapters and an epilogue, but that's about it... :(

Well, look forward to the next chappie and annyeong! ^^