[CONTENTID1] CHAPTER FIFTY EIGHT - NEW LIFE [/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]

Short chapter.

“I’m sorry, baby, I’m so sorry.”

“I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you. God, I ing hate you.”

I’m finding it increasingly difficult to keep my laughter at bay as I watch the couple before me argue senselessly. I say senselessly because their argument is completely flawed, consisting only of Hyoyeon cursing her boyfriend to the depths of Hell and him apologising for being what’s wrong with the world, even if it takes two to make three and they both know it.

“I ing hate you, I hope an Infected rips out your spinal cord and feeds it to Minki, that psychotic, cannibalistic piece of !” Hyoyeon screams and Daehyun gulps, sweat lining his forehead as much as it is Hyoyeon’s. I can’t suppress my laughter this time and it bubbles out of me.

Minki gawks at her, blatantly offended, with a hand over his heart.

Hyoyeon’s eyes snap to me and my laughter instantly dies. “What the are you ing looking at, you bug-eyed, crooked-nosed, lanky, bow-legged son of a ?”

“I’m a woman,” I remind her.

“You’re a mistake,” she retorts. I bite my lip to stop another round of laughter from escaping me. “Sorry, am I a ing comedian all of a sudden?”

“No, ma’am,” I reply, shaking my head fervently.

“Then wipe that ing smirk off your face with I claw it off and make a halloween mask out of it,” she snaps. I nod quickly, managing to suppress a grin. I can’t help but find my best friend entirely too adorable.

Yes, she’s bloated and round and swearing like a sailor, but she’s on the verge of giving birth to a brand new life and I find that utterly beautiful. It’s worth taking her dreadful — albeit strangely cute — attitude.

“Oh, no, no, no, no!” she whimpers, before outright screaming. “THIS ING !” She continues to scream and cry, all the while Daehyun apologies for being the child of Satan and promising to cut off his own once this is all over. “I’ll never forgive you, OH GOD, ANOTHER ONE!”

“Just breathe, Hyo, breathe,” Youngjae tells her whilst rushing around, dealing with things I can't even begin to understand or explain. He looks frantic, but it’s only because he’s never had to deliver a baby before. He's not that kind of doctor, he wasn't trained for any of this. It doesn't help that neither was Minki, so they're both just as clueless as each other.

“WHAT THE DO YOU THINK I’M D— OH MY GOD!” Hyoyeon shrieks, tears streaming down her face. “Hyerim, help me. Help me, help me, help me — AH! — help meeeeeeee~”

“I don’t know how to, babe,” I tell her, her hair.

“You’re the worst best friend ever,” she sobs and I laugh, nodding along. “This hurts so much, Rimmie.”

“I know, babe,” I coo, kissing her sweaty forehead. “But you’re doing great. You’re the strongest person ever for this, Hyo. You’re so strong, think of how proud your baby’s going to be when he or she comes.”

“So proud,” she sniffs, her breathing erratic as the contraction comes to an end. “I’m the best ing mother ever.”

“Yes, you are,” I chuckle, playing with her hair.

“I— I think you’re great, too,” Daehyun says and she shoots him a hateful glare. “Okay, I’ll shut up.”

“Yeah, that's what I thought,” she growls, evoking laughter from those of us watching the scene. “Oh my God, what if I poop? I don’t want to poo-hoop!” She’s sobbing again and, a few minutes later, she’s screaming at another painful contraction.

“Hyo, you’re not making childbirth a very appealing thing,” I tell her.

“Shut the uuuuuup,” she sings, teeth clenched, as well as every other limb in her body. Daehyun’s hand, which she’s holding in a vice-like grip, seems to be turning blue. I would pity the poor guy, if I weren't in the exact same situation. So, instead, I empathise with him. “I hate you so mu-huch, oppa.”

“I’m sorry!” he cries, his face lined with fear, excitement and worry. “I love you, Hyo.”

“I hate you,” she replies, “but I love you, too.” 

Hours pass. The more Hyoyeon screams, the less adorable it becomes. By the thirty-second hour, my eyes are red, my ears are ringing and there is no oxygen or blood circulating in my left hand. I want to wrap my functioning fingers around her neck and strangle her.

The woman has kept me awake for almost two days.

The natives, excluding Wonshik, Minho and one of the women, have voiced their complaints about the noise but Youngjae was quick to inform them of the pain of childbirth and how one cannot simply tell a birthing mother to keep it down.

They’re not happy and make it evident.

We don’t care and we happily state it.

“Alright, Hyoyeon, you’ve fully dilated,” Minki says as he looks between her legs and examines the area. He turns to Youngjae. “She’s ready. Is the IV still full? She’ll become dehydrated if it’s empty.”

“It’s full,” Youngjae informs him. “You — sorry, what did yo