Every damn call I took outside the house. I wasn't going to let Haerin hear me let out a string of curse and yell at someone to do their ing job the way they were supposed to or leave my ing company. She wasn't going to hear any of that. She means the world to me and I'd let her know everything but after hearing about her pregnancy, everything that can possibly stress her out is off limits. Including my occasional work-related rants. If I have to keep things to myself to keep her from anything that can harm her and the baby, then I will.

Today though, thankfully, I have no calls to take. Every work-related calls is passed onto my new stand-in, Jongdae. He still had more training to do but because of my wife's pregnancy, I had to immediately put him in place. As much as the company means to my parents and that it has given me the comfortable life I've had all these years, my wife comes first. We're now eight weeks pregnant on the dot and we have a doctor's appointment today.

It’s a very important appointment. This time, we get to hear the baby's heartbeat. A freaking heartbeat. Of course we're excited. Haerin and I talked about what it would be like. She’s nervous all through the last few weeks and she’s very careful. She is less forgetful about her condition now and takes it easy. The girls have been very helpful of her situation too. Ever since they all found out about her condition, they made sure they did activities that were fun but didn’t wear her out. Eri talked to her a lot about what to expect, things that are normal for pregnant women and what are good and bad for both mother and baby. My wife is the youngest in their group and so they treat her like a little sister going through her first pregnancy. I’m thankful they’ve been very cooperative about it. The guys on the other hand has been warning me not to be too strict because it may stress her out. It’s not like I’m going to pull a Hitler on my wife, of course not. For as long as she’s pregnant, we go mostly my way. Haerin knows it’s for her and the baby so she doesn’t have anything against a few rules at home.

Also, Doctor Jo will need to do regular tests for my wife because of her condition. From the previous check-up, we've told him that she's been throwing up more than thrice a day in some days of the week and it's not a good sign. This is one of the symptoms of possible miscarriage. We need to be very careful because more symptoms will arise in the future and we need to prevent them as much as possible. We’ve also learned that if a miscarriage happens, it will be hard for her to conceive again. Doctor Jo, however, is positive that Haerin will carry out well. She’s always been healthy and is taken cared of in a good environment. She’s kept safe and well assisted. So for that, we’re keeping calm and making sure we don’t do anything otherwise to aggravate her condition.

“Sehun,” She calls softly from the passenger seat, “Can you stay at home this Saturday? Oppa and Eunhee are going on a cruise for their anniversary and the twins and baby Jae are staying with us,”

“I thought they’re staying with mom and dad?” I look at her briefly and she’s biting her lower lip. I know where this is going and I think I know where I’m taking this conversation to, “Honey, we can’t let the kids stay with us for a week. It’s not good for you,”

“But we promised the twins.”

“No, Hae. You did.” My tone is clipped and this is my way of telling her we’re not discussing this further because I will not change my mind. As much as I love the twins and baby Jae, there was no way I would let my wife baby sit them for a week. It’s going to be too much for her, for us.

“But I really miss them…” She mutters.

“Baby, don’t push it, please? I feel bad enough that I have to turn you down and you, guilt-tripping me is making me feel like an ,” I sigh. Haerin playing the big-innocent-eyes-and-small-voice card made it hard on a man. Dammit. That card changes my mind all. the. ing. time. But this isn’t going to work on me now. I had to protect what I love and these are my wife and child.

Silence.

Now she’s playing the silent card.

The fact that my wife has so many cards she can use on me makes me wonder if I’m the only husband on earth who goes weak for these cards. Where do wives get them? How can they just pull a damn card and then have it their way?

I sigh. Don’t say it, Sehun.

“How about this—we visit them at mom and dad’s on the weekend, sounds nice?” The twinkle in her eyes doesn’t go unnoticed when I suggest this. She scoots closer and leans in to kiss my cheek. I briefly look at her and she’s smiling at the road ahead of us. I feel the corners of my mouth lift upon the brief sight of this.

It’s still a wonder how this woman ended up being my whole world. I know some lovers tend to feel like their stories get old and after each phase of their relationship, they step away further from how they began. I’d be lying if I said that didn’t scare me. I was scared we’d go through so much, thick and thin, and wake up one day not remembering how we ended up together or remember them but not cherish it anymore. But Haerin makes it so easy not to forget. All she has to do is smile and I go back to that very moment I first saw her. I’m in love with the way we fell, in love with the way we’re in love then and now, and most importantly very much in love with her. Looking back, who would have ever thought that the girl who walked in that room for an interview was going to be the mother of my child and the woman I’d spend all my tomorrow’s with?

I reach for her hand and put it to my lips, “I love you,”

She locks her fingers in the spaces between mine, “I love you too, Mr. Oh,”

When we get to the hospital, the nurse assists us while waiting for Dr. Jo. Haerin sits on the delivery chair while I stay by her side, checking on my phone and letting my assistant know I will be coming in late. While texting, I hear my wife tell the nurse how excited we are to hear the heartbeat and when I glance at her, she’s smiling like a five-year-old who got a candy.

“You are no different from all the other parent-to-be we’ve had in here,” The nurse tells her with the same excitement as my wife. Just when she’s finished assisting my wife, Dr. Jo comes in. He smiles at us.

“Good morning, Mr. and Mrs. Oh. How are we today?” He settles himself next to the Ultrasound machine standing beside the delivery chair my wife is laying on, “Nothing too out of the ordinary since the last check-up?”

“We’re good, doc. She’s eating more these days and throwing up less, it narrowed to twice a week and no cramps anymore,” I tell him and he smiles at us, which relieves me. I have been worried since my wife started throwing up after every meal and spontaneous cramps in the middle of the night. But since after our last check-up, she’s been doing better.

“That’s a good sign. Whatever you two are doing, keep it up. Now, how about we hear your baby’s heartbeat?” Dr. Jo starts applying ultrasound gel on my wife’s bump and Haerin squeezes my hand. She looks up at me, the gleam of excitement in her face cannot be missed.

I swallow a huge lump on my dry throat as I watch Dr. Jo carry the probe after applying the gel. We’re going to hear my baby’s heartbeat. I can feel my own thudding rapidly inside my chest. The excitement, anxiety building in me. I’m going to hear my baby’s heartbeat. In the books they said it will be the greatest thing a parent can hear. That it’s going to feel even more real after hearing it. I would have googled it at some point, how it would sound like, but I don’t want to ruin the surprise. I don’t want to hear another baby’s heartbeat through the internet right before my own baby. Now, the wait is over.

Dr. Jo, starts to navigate the probe on my wife’s bump and we both look at the screen. There’s an undefined image on it and Dr. Jo continues to move the probe, “Let me just locate your baby’s heart,” He says, focused on navigating.

Haerin looks at the screen, “There she is,” She whispers.

I furrow my brows, “She? How do you even know that?”

“Shut up, Sehun. A mother knows,” She says and the nurse and Dr. Jo chuckles.

“No. I have a feeling it’s a boy. He is my boy,” I tell her and she rolls her eyes at me, “And he and I will buy nerf guns and play video games together,”

“Typical dad, ain’t he Dr. Jo?” She shakes her head as Dr. Jo agrees with her, “Will you kindly please tell Sehun that most of the time mothers are right when it comes to figuring out the gender of the baby?”

Dr. Jo looks at me and it is a look telling me I am not winning this argument, “Sorry, Mr. Oh. But most of the time, when we perform the ultrasound to confirm the baby’s , the machine agrees with the mother,”

I give him a look. This doctor never supported me since day 1. He’s always taking the pregnant woman’s side. It’s a good thing I am the husband of the pregnant woman he’s siding on.

“When do we get to confirm the baby’s then? I’ve read we can figure it out on the sixteenth week, so does that mean we’re eight more weeks away?” I ask. And yes, I have done my homework.

“Yes, Mr. Oh. Just eight more weeks.” He tells me with a smile and then focuses back on my wife’s stomach, “Alright. Are you both ready to hear your baby’s heartbeat?”

Haerin and I exchange looks and her lips break into a huge grin and I let out a nervous breath. This is it. I’m hearing my baby. We both nod and Dr. Jo navigates the probe a little until we hear a faint sound. A sound of gallops. A lot of it. It’s faint until it becomes more firm and fills the room.

There’s a confused look on Haerin’s face and I highly doubt mine is any different. I squeeze her hand. It’s a galloping sound. Dr. Jo looks at us and Haerin covers as she lays her head on the headrest of the delivery chair. I look at her bump and then the screen and back to the baby bump and back to the screen. That’s my baby’s heartbeat. My mouth falls open in awe as I continue to hold onto my wife’s hand.

“Your baby’s heartbeat is normal and as healthy as it should be. Congratulations,”

It’s nothing like I ever imagined. I thought I’d be hearing small thumps. Little thuds. A cute, little thud from my wife’s womb. But no. The sound of my baby’s heartbeat is nothing like I imagined and it’s beautiful. It’s a beautiful sound. My baby has a normal and healthy heartbeat. My baby’s developing just as he should. I have a healthy baby and a healthy wife and I pray to God it stays that way. When I look down on my wife’s face, she’s covering her eyes and trying not to cry.

“We’ll give you two some alone time,” Dr. Jo says after wiping out the gel off of my wife’s bump. He and the nurse steps out of the room as I sit on the space next to Haerin.

“Baby, you okay?” I ask, running a hand through her hair as she shakes her head. Her lips start to curve downwards and she lets out a sob. I lift her hand away from her face and take a good look at her damp cheeks and teary eyes, “What’s the matter?”

She shakes her head, sitting up, “Nothing. I just…you know. It was in the book right? That pregnant women are emotional and stuff, I could be crying for no reason at all,” Haerin wipes the tears on her face and sniffles like a kid. I look at her. She hasn’t cried like this ever since her pregnancy started. Her emotions were heightened a bit, but she never cried. She didn’t even cry this hard when we first took an ultrasound of the baby. She was way too happy that day and the days that followed.

“I know you, Oh Haerin. You cry over titanic or an old neighbour’s dead cat. You cry about the deepest or littlest things but you never cry for no reason,” She looks up at me and there’s that…scared look on her face.

“It’s real,” She tells me, “The baby’s real. I’m going to be a mother. Our baby’s real, Sehun and I’m going to be a mother.” She cries.

“And that’s a good thing, babe.”

“It is, isn’t it?” She asks, laughing but there are tears flowing from her eyes.