So min woke up the next morning feeling nauseous, although if asked, she would probably prefer waking up on cloud nine that is how much happy she was but nature has its own plans. She woke up feeling dizzy and lighthearted, not real queasy but still slightly uncomfortable. She knew she has to be strong for the baby’s sake, she knew Hyun Joong is eagerly looking forward to having the child around and she doesn’t want to disappoint him, she is eagerly looking forward to the baby’s arrival as well. She gingerly placed her feet on the floor and stood up gently, when the room stopped spinning, she carefully placed one foot in front of the other until she was in the bathroom. She leant against the wall before filling up the tub and then disrobing before she got in and she finally breathed a sigh of relief as the water seem to wash away her fatigue and melt away her weariness. She smiled to herself and closed her eyes.

When she finally opened her eyes the water has turned lukewarm and she silently grimaced, her body is probably scrunched up right now and she couldn’t even see the lower half of her body as the water melon size protruding belly hindered her view but her arms really do look scrunched up. She felt giddy as she remembered the events of last night and Hyun Joong himself inviting her for breakfast which was the sole reason she woke up early unlike how she has been doing for months, intentionally lazing up and not getting out of bed until almost midday and getting out of bed happens when her stomach started growling in hunger.

She dressed up in a maternity blouse and pants, tamed her hair which leant towards unruly these days and applied subtle makeup. She sat in front of the mirror for what felt like ages and she started giggling to herself, Hyun Joong is nothing but sincere ever since she met him and although she most times had misunderstood his intentions and actions before finally finding out his real identity at the waters at Japan, what he says he does and he promised her to always be there for her and their baby, he said ‘our’ and she felt bonded to him just for that three letters he uttered, it simply means that he saw himself, her and their child as a family member. Talking of family members Hyun Jun is poking his nose where it does not belong these days and that could get him in trouble, not from anyone in the house but from those outside the house. She would try to talk to him and make him see reason that he really can’t interfere in the matters of the house. Truth be told, she wanted this score settled before her child arrives, who would want to raise a child in a mini dungeon like house? She wanted her child to have a normal childhood, have doting, loving and carefree parents she or he would always be proud of not psychopaths and definitely not be in the midst of leather girl and scary looking Sasaki and passive Shinji with the hooded eyed Jang, not a good combo.

She looked at herself to content in the mirror until she felt she look good before she opened the door to her room and then yelped, something Kim So Min doesn’t do. What caused that reaction from her was the fact that staring at her was a relaxed Hyun Joong, he had been at the door probably waiting for her to come out while she had been trying to look good for him and he had the aura of gentleness to his person unlike the harsh countenance she knew when she just came to his house. She managed a shaky smile and then looked down.

“We really should do something about this awkwardness, we are a couple and we are supposed to be at ease with each other, don’t you think?” Hyun Joong said out of the blue.

So min nodded and raised her face to look up at him. “You’re right, I’m just a little bit nervous that’s all.” She said with a little laugh.

“So am I,”

Really? Hyun Joong nervous? That’s something to chuckle about. “I’ve never known you to be anything but confident.”

Hyun Joong grimaced. “I have done some things in my life that I am not proud of but that was survival to me, I learnt everything I learnt when I was fighting the battle for survival and those lessons made me what I am today, I am not proud of it but then I chose the choice available to me. I can’t say I am overtly confident like you just said, in fact I totally disagree with you on that, I am actually sensitive.” At her surprised look he smiled and then took her hand in his and then started walking away from the door.

He could sense her trying to hold back from asking the question he knew was in her mind and right on the tip of her tongue, so he decided to elucidate. “Like I said earlier I am highly sensitive it is just hard to notice my area of sensitivity but I would like to believe someone really close to me can point out at least few of my weak points.”

Is he referring to her? Does she really have any idea he can be sensitive? “I know you care a lot about your brother and you wouldn’t let anything happen to him, to me that make you vulnerable. I have a feeling what it would feel like to have your brother taken from you and I know that’s exactly why you are keeping him under key and lock and the watchful eyes of your inferiors, it’s like you don’t want to experience any sort of loss.” She found her mind going back to the story Hyun Jun told her about his first wife but she doesn’t want to mention it. Now that she spoke the words out loud she suddenly realized that he is afraid of losing his dear ones, he really does love his younger brother and to people like Wang that is a form of weakness.

“Since you are about telling me your areas of sensitivity how many more secrets do I get to know?” she asked teasingly. By now they are downstairs but none of them thought of breakfast, they wanted to continue their discussion but Hyun Joong looked down at her stomach and he led her to the dining table. “I will continue with my tale after breakfast.”

“Tale? Okay, I am eager to hear your tale,” she couldn’t hide her smile when he pulled back the chair for her something she was sure he had never done for her before.

After breaking their fast, Hyun Joong took her hand in his and led her to the den, they sat beside each other and he continued, “ I am overly protective of what I regard as mine, I practically raised Hyun Jun on my own and I know I don’t want to lose him the way our parents left us. I, particularly was treated badly when growing up and I swore I would never let my brother experience a quarter of what I passed through. I wasn’t really surprised when I found out that Mum left us, I was relieved actually and I fully took up caring for him and he was one of the reasons I had to join the Mafia. I would do anything for Hyun Jun. I just started treating him like a grown up few years ago because I always think of him as my son and even though I wasn’t really that much older than him I gladly took up the role of a father figure to him.” He doesn’t even realize he was telling her about his life history, something he had never told anyone before. So Eun knew he had a difficult childhood based on her instincts but he never admitted to anything and she stopped asking when she finally understood that he doesn’t find any joy talking about his past.

“I started picking pocket to feed us both and I made sure to keep him in school, I also made it as if mother never left, people hardly sees her anyway and so we lived as if we had a mother who works late so as to avoid the interference of the Welfare, I couldn’t even bear the thought of being away from him, it is still the same now. I tried to provide him with everything he wants and I try my possible best to get it for him using every dirty means available.

I find it hard to believe that a criminal like me raised such a responsible man and he’s always adored me. He listens to me, and most importantly he makes me proud. How he must be disappointed