CHAPTER IV : The Blessing

“Baekhyun! Are you okay in there?!” Chanyeol was panicking. Minutes have passed and Baekhyun still hadn't come out of the bathroom. The muffled cries that Chanyeol could hear from the other side of the door weren't helping him calm down.

It's two lines.. I'm pregnant..

“Oh my goodness Chanyeol! It's two lines!” Baekhyun rushed to open the door and hugged his now dumbfounded husband by the bathroom entrance.

“B-Baekhyun.. T-that's p-positive r-right?” Chanyeol was so out of it. He couldn’t believe it. He was so happy. He was going to be a father. He was going to be a father soon! I'm going to be a father! He cleared his throat, “Let's go to Dr. Huang to confirm this and have your first check up.”

“Well…” It was another doctor who had checked, and whose pregnant pause created suspense for the expecting duo, “FINALLY! Congratulations to you two! You'll soon be parents! Baekhyun is already in his third week of the pregnancy. He's due to give birth on February next year. Once again, congratulations! But this time please do be careful, we don't want another miscarriage now, do we?”

After confirming it with Doctor Huang, the two lovebirds spread the news. They called their parents for the good news. They called Chen and his spouse, they told their other friends and colleagues, and they told even their extended family. This time they're so certain that the fetus won't die in the womb. Dr. Huang did say that the child's hold is stronger than the first one. The love birds’ guts were certain that this child won't let them down.

“I'm going to be a dad!” Chanyeol couldn't really shut up about it. To almost every person he passed by, he would say this with his wide creepy grin and full set of perfect teeth. Other people responded to him with smiles and congratulations. Most people just ignored or kept distant from him, thinking he was crazy. He was. At least, he felt so happy that he could only be insane. He was so enraptured by the fact that they'll finally be a whole family.

Pretty much everyone they meet knew that they were expecting now. Baekhyun even put up a promo in his eatery just to spread and celebrate the joy of his pregnancy.

“So.. I hit the home run?” Joonmyeon took his usual seat in the luncheonette.

“Oh it's you! Thank you so, so much Suho, for giving Chanyeol and I a child of our own!” Baekhyun was so entranced with the happy baby feels too, that he pushed aside the reality that the child was his and Suho's and not his and Chanyeol’s.

He was just so delighted to finally be a parent. So was Chanyeol. Since having confirmed the news, the couple were simply filled with joy and excitement about the baby. Everything was just about the baby. They didn't seem to care about how the child had came to be, all the they went through to have a child. Right now, they just couldn't wait to see the child.

Throughout the pregnancy, Chanyeol’s patience was tested. It was tested many times, but of course, he didn't want to flip. He couldn't flip. Baekhyun needed him,  and aside from showering his husband with love and affection,  Chanyeol also regarded Baekhyun with the utmost care. Hello, they were about to have a child. He couldn't afford to lose their baby now.

Baekhyun started craving by his fourth month. He made the absurd requests, much to Chanyeol’s chagrin,  such as demanding for the sweetest mangoes. He wanted not just any mango, he wanted only the sweetest, which could only be purchased from tropical countries hundreds of miles away.

“How will I get that? You want me to travel to another country just for THREE PIECES OF FRESHLY PICKED MANGOES?! Baekhyun, are you out of your mind?!”

He had Chanyeol dip chicken in chocolate fondue. He specifically instructed his food, the fried sort and whether it was for the eatery or for his own consumption, to be cooked with only butter and not cooking oil. He liked perfectly julienne sliced cheese in his frozen jajamyeon, and he still had plenty more weird appetency.

Chen could sympathize with Chanyeol. He knew exactly how it was. He has experienced it twice now with Minseok.

“You're lucky dude, you'll only go through this once, I had to undergo it twice! Piece of advice, just go with everything he says. Be careful with your words. Try not to upset him. Emotions are high and really fast-changing during pregnancy.”

When Baekhyun hit the sixth month, he sported a fairly visible growing baby bump. Everyone became even more protective then, and a gazillion of new rules were established. Superstitions followed soon after as well, courtesy of Chanyeol. Actually, almost everyone contributed at least one superstition--both of their parents, Yura who had been pregnant once before, Chen and his spouse who have experienced both the agony and joy of waiting twice, and of course, the just returned Sehun who immediately came back to their lives after hearing the good news of Baek’s gestation.

Saying that if the pregnant person doesn't get the food being craved, the baby's eyes will be crooked. Baekhyun’s meals must always consist of seaweed soup. He must be kept warm at all times to prevent arthritis and achy joints later in life. No going to funerals or walking, anything that involves spending energy. He was not allowed to eat chicken skin anymore or else the baby will have chicken skin. Don't hate the husband while pregnant or else the baby will look like him, but then again, Chanyeol was handsome, maybe Baekhyun should get angry.

There were many, many more,  such as the one that said Baekhyun should only look at pretty babies so his baby will also be pretty. If the husband got him pregnant while drunk, the baby will come out goofy. No one was drunk that night. Also, no eating of cold or hard food, for the baby's teeth would fall out. If he dreamt of flowers while pregnant, it would be a boy. On the other hand, dreaming of fruit meant his baby would be a girl. He was forced to listen to only classical music for the baby to become smart. He was not allowed to think of naughty things and watch anything that involved those nasty stuff. He was only allowed to watch and read classic stories. He needed to drink lots of hot herbal tea, and he simply wasn't allowed to eat ugly food because it would make the baby ugly too.

There were tons and tons of things to do and remember. Simply too many that everything seemed to make Baekhyun’s brain cringe with so much... pain? He knew there were more to come as his belly grew.

On the seventh month Dr. Huang had set them for another ultrasound session. This time it was not like the other sessions they did before. This time, they'll finally know the gender of the baby!

“Are you ready Mr. and Mr. Park? Today we'll finally know if it's a boy or a girl. Have your names ready!”

A gel was spread on Baekhyun’s belly, once the ‘mic’ was placed on his stomach, the heartbeat of the baby resonated the room. All eyes were glued on the screen waiting to see for signs to indicate the gender of the fetus.

“Let's see.. well that's the foot right there.. let's move a little to the side.. hmmm.. what is this I see? Your child may be a ‘he’. This right here,” Huang gestures circularly to one part of the screen, “It seems like a , but then again it's not a hundred percent guaranteed. Nevertheless! Congratulations to you two! You may be expecting a baby boy!”

“Funny, I always dreamt about fruits and not flowers..” Baekhyun was now lounging around the house with Sehun as companion. Since Baekhyun has a really delicate pregnancy, Chanyeol prohibited his spouse from working in the diner and that Baekhyun should always have at least one other person to keep him company. “Speaking of fruits, I even crave for a lot of it. Could you please fetch me some bananas from the kitchen counter?”

“Well that dream thing is a flop. Who told