Youngbae texted her every chance he could that first day.  To the point where, she finally sent back a text that said, "Sorry, the number you have texted is no longer in service... please try again later... like TOMORROW."  He finally got the hint and eased up a little.  Guess there was only so much food and rest a person could get in a day... He smiled quietly and told himself to let go.  He just needed to stop worrying.  Amina had finally settled down in a place where he knew she wasn't going to leave easily.  A place he knew where he could get to her whenever he wanted to. At least he hoped so.

It still scared him sometimes, knowing that Amina might not be there the next time he turned around. There was a small portion of him that was still afraid that she would just up and leave like she did last time and not say a word.  But only this time - he wouldn't be able to find her.  The thought frightened him... and made him become a little more possessive, more controlling.  It was an uneasiness that made him insecure.  He hated the wretched feelings coursing inside.

"Hey," Jiyong nodded at him.  "You ready?"

"Yeah..." Youngbae replied.  He tucked his phone in his jacket pocket and moved forward to join the others for their cameo appearance on a variety show.  Although he had texted Jiyong last night about Amina's whereabouts, he didn't get a chance to delve into any details.  He stood quietly by and waited for the announcer to call them up.

Apparently it wasn't quiet enough.  Jiyong noticed the vibration of excitement humming off Youngbae's body, his eyes alight with mischief.  Jiyong grinned. "What's up with you?"  He glanced back at Youngbae's jacket.  "Did you receive good birthday news?"

"Huh?" Youngbae asked, his face taken aback.  "Oh... neh," he grinned, sheepishly.  "I guess you can say that..." His eyes danced back and forth as he peered at Jiyong.  He his lips and grinned.  "Umm..." He smiled, his body swaying slightly.

"What?" Jiyong became alarmed, his mouth curving up in a smile for no reason except to anticipate whatever Youngbae was about to say.  "What happened?"

Youngbae bit back his smile, his eyes still glowing with joy.  He let the moment sink in.

It made the wait worse for Jiyong.  He pounced.  "Is it Amina?"

Youngbae nodded slightly and moved his attention forward when the stage handler called their names.  He glanced back at Jiyong and gave him a lop-sided grin.  He could tell his friend was frustrated with his half-answers.  He leaned into Jiyong's ear and whispered.  "She's pregnant." Youngbae moved back, all seriousness on his face as he took in Jiyong's expression.

Jiyong raised both eyebrows, his mouth parted slightly in surprise.   He crossed both arms across his chest and rubbed his chin lightly. "Jeongmal?"

It wasn't exactly the response Youngbae had expected.  It sobered him up.  "Neh," he replied, his eyes watchful.

"Yours?"

"Neh," came the heated response.

Jiyong raised both hands.  "No offense..." He watched the fire in Youngbae's eyes die down.  "It's just that... you guys are always back and forth. I had to ask."

Youngbae released a deep sigh and shrugged the tension from his shoulders.  "It's alright.  I asked her the same thing."

Jiyong let out a scoff of disbelief.  "What did she say to that?"

"Oh," Youngbae grinned.  "She hit me."

Jiyong grinned and shook his head.  "So what are you going to do now?"

"What's there to do?"  Youngbae shrugged.  "I'm going to take care of her and our baby."

"So... are you guys together again?" Jiyong asked worriedly, his eyebrows creasing together.

"Kind of," Youngbae his lips, feeling uncertain.  He let out a half-laugh.  "I don't know... she was kind of mad at me this morning, so we might be off again."  He grinned at Jiyong's incredulous expression.  He shrugged.  "We're just taking things slow this time and not rushing into anything."  He glanced around backstage as people rushed by before turning back to Jiyong.  "Right now, I got her to agree to live at my place until the baby comes."

Jiyong grinned.  "You mean... you coerced her into living at your place?"

"Ani," Youngbae sneered. "I made her see it... from a logical perspective.  Her place was too small... and I told her it was my way of taking care of the baby."

Jiyong continued to stare at him knowingly.

Youngbae gave in and grinned.  "And... she just lost both of her jobs last night."

Jiyong chuckled.

Youngbae joined in and laughed.  "Yeah... that was pretty low of me.  But it was either that or let her continue living near Hooker Hill."

"Mwuh?"

"Neh..." Youngbae quickly described the events from last night and Amina's strange behavior when they left the apartment complex.  "I swear... I think I fight with her a lot more now than I remember."  He worried his bottom lip lightly between his teeth, his gaze distant.  "She drives me crazy," he muttered.

Jiyong grinned and placed a hand on Youngbae's shoulder.  "Well, I'm happy for you man... although I'm still a bit worried about your relationship with Amina.  I'm definitely happy about the baby," he repeated, his eyes a little envious.  "We always said you would marry first... but I never thought you would be the first to have a kid."

"Yeah, I know," Youngbae nodded absentmindedly.  "It wasn't planned or anything..." He blushed upon catching Jiyong's teasing gaze.  "I mean... we always thought if anyone would have a child out of wedlock it would be..."

"Seungri..." they both chimed together. 

Jiyong shook his head and smiled quietly.  "So when you going to tell your umma?"

Youngbae rubbed his lips with the back of his fingers, self-consciously.  "I don't know..." he worried.  "I don't know how she's going to take it.  Although I'm happy about it, this isn't exactly something I know my umma would be proud of."

"Well, your umma knows the situation between you and Amina, right?"

Youngbae shook his head.  "I stopped talking about our relationship last summer when I told umma that Amina was busy with her studies."  He looked back at Jiyong.  "She recently knows about Amina's dad and a little bit about Amina being back home.  But as far as umma knows... she thinks Amina and I have been together this whole time."

"Mwuh?" Jiyong let out a half-laugh, surprise written all over his face.

"Don't start with me..." Youngbae looked off embarrassed.

"How could you not tell your umma?!"

Youngbae wavered a little, trying to find the right words to say.  He shifted his weight from foot to foot before beginning.  "Because I didn't want to upset her," Youngbae replied, his face red.  "I didn't want her to be disappointed."  He looked at Jiyong.  "She really liked Amina. Always asked about her when I called.  I couldn't find it in myself to tell her the truth..."

"Aigoo..." Jiyong shook his head, face-palming himself.  "Well, it's a good thing you're kind of getting back together then. Or it would be a really awkward conversation."

Youngbae half-laughed in agreement.  "Yeah... I mean, how would I've explain that I'm having a baby with an ex-girlfriend?"

They looked at each other and shook their heads.

"Well, you know what's coming after that," Jiyong said, his voice dead-panned.

Youngbae nodded and sighed.

"YG," they both said in unison.

"Hyung!"

They both glanced over to see Seungri beckoning them over.  It was time to join the others on the stage.  They headed towards the curtain and kept their voices low. 

"How do you think that conversation's going to go?" asked Jiyong.

"I don't know," replied Youngbae.  "Hyung was pretty tolerant with me over my last two incidents.  But I don't think he'll take this lightly, especially with my album coming up.  If word gets out..." He shook his head.  "I don't know."

"I'm sure hyung will feed off whatever your umma says as well," replied Jiyong.  "He'll want to know how your umma reacts before he decides on his punishment."  He sent Youngbae an evil grin.

"Aish," Youngbae grinned back.  "I'm already dreading what it will be..."

They quieted down as the opening music for the show began.

"Yah!" hissed Jiyong.

Youngbae glanced over.

"You'll name the baby after me, right?"  Jiyong wiggled his eyebrows up and down.

"Huh?" Daesung asked Seungri.  "What baby?"

Youngbae gave Jiyong an irritated glance and grinned, before looking quickly away.

The rest of the week flew by in a blur as soon as Amina worked herself into a routine each day.  Every morning, she'd rise early and take Boss out for a daily jog around the neighborhood park - much to the pup's delight.  Sometimes, Amina's thoughts ran away from her as she kept jogging - unaware of the distance and time she took.  It wore Boss out by the time they got home and he became docile and calmer the rest of the evening.  Soon, he started to pay more attention to her when she ordered him around.  It gave her the quiet confidence and reassurance she needed in her otherwise chaotic life.

She made the call to Dr. Jang's office on Monday and they were able to schedule her first prenatal care appointment for tomorrow - on Thursday.  It was just a simple appointment to go over her vitals and reaffirm her pregnancy status.  But scholar that she was, Amina went ahead and researched her questions beforehand so she could come prepared for the appointment.

Amina went to the local library to use their computers to research the different stages of pregnancy.  The more she read the more ill she felt.  There were so many things that could wrong... foods you should avoid... medicine you should avoid... don't do this... do that... It started to overwhelm her.  Suddenly, going to med school seemed much easier than being a mom. She took a deep breath and cleared her mind. 

While there, she also looked into the pre-requisites that she would need to return to medical school. The amount of money she would need, if she didn't have any scholarships to support her outright, was a bit daunting but do-able... if she could save... perhaps less than two years straight.  But with the right job... maybe sooner.  Her MCAT scores would be out-dated by then and she would have to re-do the year she just flubbed up, much to her dismay.  It would set her bac