Chapter Thirteen:

 

(Three months later at Seoul International Airport)

 

“Master Nickhun!” Khun’s family butler bowed at took Khun’s suitcases. He carefully stored them in the trunk.

 

Nickhun got into the BMW and took off his sunglasses.

 

The butler drove Khun through Seoul to the family mansion.

 

Nickhun smiled as they passed the Seoul Academy for the Gifted and Talented.

 

‘It’s good to be back...’

 

Yoona put on her jacket. It was September, so there was a chilly breeze in the air. She put on a scarf as well, just to make sure she didn’t get sick; she didn’t want her baby to catch a cold.

 

Yoona grabbed her purse and walked outside. She was heading to the obstetrician for her monthly check up.

 

She walked down the street and into the middle of Seoul. As she walked, a sleek black BMW passed her…

 

Nickhun looked out the window. He gasped.

 

“Y-Yoona?” He stuttered. He looked at her abdomen. “But...she’s…”

 

His butler looked back.

 

“Master? Are you alright?”

 

Khun took a deep breath.

 

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.”

 

Nickhun shut his eyes.

 

‘I must be losing my mind...how could Yoona be...pregnant?’

 

He looked out the window and looked back but could no longer make out Yoona in the crowd of people. He sighed.

 

‘I’ll just pretend...I never saw her…”

 

Donghae grinned.

 

“Your baby is healthy and growing well.”

 

Yoona sighed, relieved.

 

“That’s good to hear. I’ve been sick a lot this past month so I was worried.”

 

Donghae furrowed his eyebrows, worried.

 

“Do you feel okay now?”

 

Yoona nodded.

 

Donghae smiled. “That’s good, but maybe I should give you a check up.”

 

Donghae nodded. He checked his watch. “I could give you a quick one right now, just to see if you are ill or not.”

 

Yoona hesitated but nodded.

 

Donghae took a small blood sample first before beginning the check up. He felt her forehead.

 

“You have a small fever…you should go home and rest. Come back in a week for the check up results.”

 

Yoona bowed and left, worried.

 

“Make sure to rest!” Donghae called after her.

 

He sighed.

 

“Take care, Yoona.”

 

Taecyeon parked his car outside Esper, his parents’ multimillionaire insurance company. He fixed his tie and walked inside.

 

He sat in his office and began paperwork.

 

Around lunchtime, his secretary, Daesung, walked in.

 

“Taecyeon.” Daesung bowed. “Mr. Ok just called for you. He asked you to meet him in his office.”

 

Taecyeon stood. “Thank you.”

 

He stepped into the elevator and went up to his father’s office.

 

Mr. Ok was a strict man who believed in tradition and power. He spent a lot of time working and barely interacted in family activities.

 

Taecyeon walked into his father’s office and bowed respectfully. Mr. Ok turned in his chair.

 

“Father, you called for me?”

 

Mr. Ok gestured towards the chair in front of him.

 

“Sit, Taecyeon.”

 

Taecyeon sat down and fidgeted with his hands.

 

“Taecyeon...I have a request for you.”

 

Taecyeon looked at his father.

 

“Yes?”

 

Mr. Ok took a deep breath.

 

“I have arranged for you to marry a girl from a company who wants to collab with Esper.”

 

Taecyeon was shocked.

 

“W-what? An arranged marriage?”

 

Mr. Ok nodded. “It’s sudden, but that’s how arranged marriages are.” He raised an eyebrow. “You’ll accept, right?”

 

Taecyeon blinked. “F-father...I...I can’t. I can’t marry a girl I barely know!”

 

Mr. Ok nodded again. “Exactly why your mother and I have arranged for the two of you to meet up on Friday. Go out to eat, watch a movie

together, and get to know each other.”

 

Taecyeon stared in shock.

 

“Dad, no! I’m not going to agree!”

 

Mr. Ok smirked.

 

“It’s not like you had a choice, anyways.” Mr. Ok smiled. “The marriage will be in three months.” He waved his hand. “Now get out of my office.”

 

Taecyeon knew it was useless to argue against his father.

 

He bit his lip, bowed stiffly, and walked out.

 

 

Back in his office, Taecyeon slumped in his chair.

 

“Aishh…” He stomped. “How am I supposed to marry someone in THREE MONTHS?”

 

Taecyeon sighed.

 

He thought back to Yoona from what seemed like an eternity ago.

 

Taecyeon stood abruptly.

 

“Ok Taecyeon! Forget about that girl!” He shook his head. “Why do I keep reminiscing memories from the past that will never happen again? WHY?!”

 

Taecyeon shut his eyes.

 

“Yoona will only be there in my dreams from now on...in reality, she is nothing to me anymore.”

 

Yoona went home and laid back in bed. She rubbed her clearly visible stomach and sighed.

 

“I wonder what would’ve happened if your daddy knew he had you…”

 

Taemin lightly knocked on her door.

 

“Noona?”

 

Yoona looked up. “Oh! Taemin, why aren’t you at school?”

 

Taemin bit his lip.

 

“I remembered at the last minute that I forgot my basketball.”

 

Yoona rolled her eyes. “You came back, knowing you’d be late for school, to get your BASKETBALL?”

 

Taemin looked down.

 

Yoona sighed and stood. She pinched his cheeks teasingly.

 

“Oh, what am I going to do about you?”

 

Taemin smiled. That was one of the many good things about Yoona: she couldn't stay mad for a long time.

 

Taemin spun the basketball on his finger.

 

"Well, I'm going to go now." He checked his watch. "If I run fast enough, I might make it before the tardy bell."

 

He waved. "Bye, noona! See you later!"

 

Yoona smiled and watched Taemin dash down the street.

 

"Be careful!" Yoona called after him. Taemin turned and made an "okay" sign with his hand.

 

"Don't worry, noona!"

 

He dribbled the basketball as he ran to school.

 

(A few days later)

 

Donghae flipped through paperwork, sighing.

 

“So much work.”

 

Just then, someone walked into his office. One of the nurses, Hyuna, bowed and stepped inside. She handed him a folder.

 

“Im Yoona’s blood test results are in.”

 

Donghae smiled.

 

“Thank you.”

 

Hyuna bowed again and left.

 

Donghae immediately opened the folder and read through the results. He gasped.

 

“W-what?”

 

Someone knocked on his door.

 

"Come in."

 

Yoona walked into the room and bowed slightly.

 

"Ah...good morning."

 

Donghae looked up and forced a smile.

 

"Yoona!" He gestured for her to sit in the chair in front of him. Yoona smiled back and sat.

 

Donghae took out a folder.

 

"Your checkup and blood test results are in." He told her. He flipped through the papers.

 

Yoona bit her lip.

 

"Is...anything wrong?"

 

Donghae looked carefully at the results again.

 

"Uh, it looks like your immune system is a bit weak...and you should eat more." He glanced at Yoona. "You're pretty underweight."

 

Yoona looked down.

 

"Ah...ok."

 

Donghae bit his lip.

 

“The big news is...according to your blood test results, you may be at risk for heart disease.”

 

Yoona looked up.

 

“W-what?”

 

Donghae looked down.

 

“I’m sorry. Of course, we are not sure yet, but there is a possibility. We will run more tests in a couple days.”

 

Yoona looked pale and shocked. Donghae reached over and took her hands.

 

"Make sure you rest a lot. Get a lot of nutrients...and if you are ever feverish or sick, come tell me."

 

"T-thank you."

 

Donghae stood.

 

"No problem." He helped Yoona up and opened the door for her.

 

Yoona bowed.

 

"Thank you again."

 

Donghae nodded.

 

"Alright. See you later."

 

Yoona turned and walked down the hall.

 

Tiffany saw Yoona hurrying out of the hospital and ran after her.

 

“Yah! Im Yoona!”

 

Tiffany grabbed her arm and was shocked to see Yoona with tears in her eyes.

 

“Y-Yoona?”

 

Yoona looked down.

 

Tiffany took a deep breath.

 

“Okay...so…”

 

Yoona kept crying, shutting her eyes and collapsing onto the ground.

 

“Tiffany...what do I do?”

 

Tiffany was confused. She kneeled next to Yoona and hesitated before patting her back.

 

“W-what’s wrong?”

 

Yoona sobbed.

 

“I...I’m…”

 

Tiffany stared at Yoona. She had never seen her like this, and was, surprisingly, sympathetic towards her for once.

 

“Are you okay?” Tiffany asked.

 

Yoona opened her eyes and sobbed.

 

"If anything happens to me...what would happen to Taemin and the baby?" She whispered.

 

Tiffany could tell that something was wrong.

 

"Yoona, stop crying and tell me."

 

Yoona looked up and wiped her eyes.

 

"No...no." Yoona said quietly. She stood slowly and bowed slightly. "I-I'm sorry."

 

She turned and started to leave.

 

Tiffany grabbed Yoona’s wrist and bit her lip.

 

"Yoona...look...I wanted to tell you something."

 

Yoona looked at her sadly.

 

"Yes?"

 

Tiffany took a deep breath.

 

"I'm sorry...for being so mean to you before."

 

Yoona looked at her and smiled weakly.

 

"But why are you saying that right now?" Yoona asked. "I already forgave you."

 

Tiffany was confused.

 

"W-what?"

 

Yoona looked sincere.

 

"I don't stay angry too long. At graduation, in my head, I wished you a happy life. I forgave you." Yoona looked down. "Besides, I had done things

that hurt you. So I should be the one that’s sorry. Forgive me."

 

Yoona smiled again and turned shakily. She slowly walked down the street.

 

Tiffany stared.

 

"Yoona..."

 

She felt a mixture of happiness, relief, and confusion in her heart.

 

She sighed.

 

"I forgive you." Tiffany smiled lightly. "Maybe we can finally be friends."