008

 

Despite arriving late at Haneul, Woohyun and the two other chefs have made such a significant progress in the making of the three-course meal that they’re planning for Celebrity Tasty Adventures. The progress they made puts him in such a good mood that he forgets he’s supposed to be mad at Sunggyu and even before he could stop himself, he’s already calling the other man while buzzing with excitement. As he walks out of Haneul’s kitchen, his staff, who are cleaning up the place, say their goodbyes to him. Woohyun tells them to be careful on the way home as he exits. He still has his phone pressed against his ear as he walks towards the subway station but Sunggyu still hasn’t picked up his call. Woohyun frowns and stares at his screen (now broken because he threw it against the wall after he screamed at Sunggyu that he hated him).

 

8:32pm

 

Sunggyu should be out of his shift at the hospital by now, shouldn’t he? He should be on his way home already but why isn’t he picking up? As Woohyun arrives at the subway platform, he shrugs and keeps his phone in his pocket while thinking that his boyfriend must be driving home by now that’s why he’s not picking his phone up. Luckily, only a few people are riding the train at this hour and Woohyun manages to get a comfortable seat. The ride home is quite chill and relaxing, to be honest, so in less than twenty minutes, he’s unlocking their front door and kicking his shoes off.

 

“Gyu-gyu? I’m home!” Woohyun calls out, dumping his backpack and jacket on the couch.

 

“I-In the kitchen,” Sunggyu hesitantly answers after a few seconds.

 

Woohyun frowns, thinking how strange it is that Sunggyu is in the kitchen. But as he walks closer to their kitchen, his nose is met with the aroma of something cooking. He quickens his pace and true enough, Sunggyu is wearing Woohyun’s frilly apron while cooking up something on their stove.

 

“Are you really cooking?” Woohyun asks incredulously.

 

Sunggyu looks at him over his shoulder and sheepishly chuckles before turning his attention back on the pot.

 

“Yeah,” Sunggyu answers. “It’s the least I could do after making you mad this morning…”

 

Woohyun laughs and hugs his boyfriend from behind, affectionately nuzzling his face on Sunggyu’s back like a puppy. The morning’s events come flashing back in his mind. He remembers how furious he had been, how loud he had screamed at his phone and how he yelled that he hated Sunggyu. He had been so carried away by the irritation he felt that morning that he acted crazy. Looking back now, his actions are making him feel guilty and a little embarrassed.

 

“I’m so sorry for yelling at you through the voicemails…” Woohyun apologizes, clinging onto Sunggyu tighter.

 

Sunggyu switches the stove off and places the lid on the pot before turning around and framing Woohyun’s small face with his beautiful hands. With his slender fingers, he smoothes out the worry lines on Woohyun’s face and rests his chin on top of his head, taking in the addicting scent of the younger.

 

“No, I should be the one saying sorry to you, Woohyun-ah. I told you I would be the one driving you to Haneul and I’m such an insensitive asswipe for not keeping my word. I’m so sorry,” Sunggyu says.

 

“Okay, I accept your apology...but you have to admit that I overreacted a little bit, right?” Woohyun says.

 

    Sunggyu pulls him as close as the huge baby bump could allow him and Woohyun just wants to melt into a puddle of goo because of how warm his boyfriend’s arms feel around him.

 

    “You didn’t overreact. It’s totally understandable to react that way. I’d be furious as well if I was in your position.”

 

    “Oh, Gyu-gyu,” Woohyun coos, pulling away to look at Sunggyu in the eyes, “what did I do to deserve you? How could you be real?”

 

No, Woohyun-ah, what did I do to deserve you?

 

    Woohyun goes on his tiptoes and kisses Sunggyu’s forehead, down to the tip of his nose, both his cheeks, his chin and finally his lips. He looks at Sunggyu again with his puppy eyes filled with so much love and Sunggyu could see Woohyun’s imaginary tail wagging right now.

 

Nam Woohyun is the cutest little puppy in the world. Your argument is invalid.

 

Sunggyu stares at him for a moment longer, just taking in how adorable and beautiful Woohyun looks right now all wrapped up in his arms. He gets the urge to squeeze him and bite him but he stops himself because aside from the fact that he’s going to embarrass himself if he does that, he doesn’t want to hurt Woohyun and the triplets by squeezing them.

 

“I get that you’re so in love with me, Woohyun-ah,” Sunggyu teases instead, earning an eye roll from the younger. “Shall we eat before my master piece cools down and turns all gross?”

 

“Yeah! I’m starving!” Woohyun cheerfully says, eagerly taking his seat.

 

As Sunggyu watches Woohyun take the first bite of the soup pasta, he holds his breath in anticipation of the other’s reaction. When Woohyun holds a big thumbs up matched with a big smile on his face, Sunggyu sighs in relief.

 

“I’ll eat well! Thank you for the food!” Woohyun says.

 

Sunggyu starts to eat as well and effectively surprises himself at how delicious his dish turned out to be. He shakes his head with a laugh, not believing how well this day is ending considering the way it started. He’s just thankful that Woohyun is no longer furious with him.

 

♡

 

“Can I just ride on your back, Gyu-gyu?”

 

Woohyun’s eyes are barely open as he waits for Sunggyu to finish lacing up his sneakers (because he can’t bend down to reach his feet anymore even when he’s sitting down). It’s almost 7:40 in the morning and despite Sunggyu insisting that they should be leaving the house by 7, Woohyun just can’t seem to open his eyes today.

 

Sunggyu actually suggested that he should just stay at home for that day but Woohyun was extremely stubborn, saying that he really needs to go to Haneul and help the other chefs with the preparation. Sunggyu doesn’t really know what else is left to prepare for that KBS special at Haneul but he just chose to shut his mouth and understood that something like that is a huge deal for Woohyun. But just because it means a lot to him, doesn’t mean that it makes him get out of bed easily. Sunggyu had to support Woohyun going to the bathroom and get washed up. He even had to dress the pregnant male because if he doesn’t, they would be later than they already are.

 

“Gyu-gyu, piggyback me,” Woohyun insists when Sunggyu finishes tying his shoelaces.

 

“No, Woohyun-ah. Let’s go,” Sunggyu firmly says.

 

He opens their front door and gently tugs Woohyun by the hand but the other won’t budge. He is looking at Sunggyu defiantly while pouting.

 

“Piggyback me! I’m feeling too sluggish to walk to your car! It’s too far!” Woohyun says.

 

“Woohyun-ah, you’re too heavy. Do you want my spine to snap in half?” Sunggyu says.

 

Woohyun lets out a dramatic gasp while putting his tiny hand to cover his mouth. Sunggyu sighs and glances at his watch. He shouldn’t have said that because now Woohyun is going to whine at him for five or so minutes about being insensitive and whatnot.

 

“I knew it! You think I’m fat now, don’t you? You’re probably thinking that I look like a whale shark now and my cheeks aren’t adorable anymore! You used to call me a cute mandu but now my face is too oversized for your liking, huh? How dare you say that your spine will snap in half if you piggyback me? Are you saying that the triplets and I are fat? Are--”

 

“Hop on,” Sunggyu interjects, showing his back to Woohyun while slightly bending down.

 

Woohyun glares at him briefly before he starts to climb on Sunggyu’s back. He scampers and struggles, almost knocking the both of them off balance before finally managing to get on Sunggyu’s back. Sunggyu huffs and straightens up, legs trembling at the effort. He takes a step forward and says a silent prayer that he wouldn’t fall because if he does, he’s going to take Woohyun with him.

 

“Okay, okay, stop,” Woohyun says. “This is uncomfortable.”

 

With a groan, he gets off Sunggyu’s back. Sunggyu pants, hands resting on his knees for support.

 

“Woohyun-ah, let’s just go, please...” Sunggyu says.

 

Without saying anything, Woohyun walks to Sunggyu’s car and yanks open the passenger door. He gets on it and crosses his arm in front of his chest after slamming the door close. Sunggyu sighs for what feels like the nth time this day. He thought that the moodswings of pregnant people are supposed to be the most active during the first trimester since their bodies are still adjusting to the new hormones. But Woohyun is already in the middle of his second trimester and he’s been really moody for the past few days. Even since the livid voicemails incident last week, Woohyun’s been extremely touchy.

 

“We have an appointment with Dr. Byun tomorrow. Don’t forget. You have to be there so take the whole day off,” Woohyun says while they’re driving.

 

Sunggyu actually has to be at Seoul University tomorrow with Dr. Chaerin and her team. Tomorrow is an important day and missing it would really be such a pity but as Sunggyu glances at Woohyun’s frowning face, he knows that he has to go with his boyfriend at all costs.

 

“Do you understand, Sunggyu?” Woohyun says.

 

“Yeah.”

 

♡

 

Jinki looks sympathetically at Sunggyu as the other tries to explain to their supervisor why he’s late for the sixth time in a row. Their supervisor, Dr. Hwang, had been understanding at first when Sunggyu told her about Woohyun’s condition and had even wrote off two of his lates. But now, she looks bored and quite mad while Sunggyu is explaining.

 

“He can’t drive anymore, so it’s really my responsibility to drop him off everywhere now. I’m really, really sorry, Dr. Hwang! Please understand! I won’t be late anymore!” Sunggyu says, clasping his hands together pleadingly.

 

“Intern Kim, you’re aware of the internship program rules of the hospital, are you?” Dr. Hwang says.

 

Jinki’s eyes widen upon hearing that.

 

“Y-Yes, Dr. Hwang.”

 

“Then you’re aware that having seven lates in a row with no valid excuse could cause you to be kicked out of the program, are you?”

 

“Yes, Dr. Hwang. I’m really sorry.”

 

“One more late and you’re going to be out of the program, Intern Kim. All the hours you’ve worked for would be erased and you have to start over again,” Dr. Hwang says.

 

“I’m sorry. I promise not to be late anymore,” Sunggyu says, deeply bowing.

 

Dr. Hwang’s face softens. She softly pats Sunggyu’s shoulder to make him stand up straight again.

 

“Sunggyu-shi, I understand that you and your lover are expecting triplets and his condition is no joke. I understand that he needs all the support you can give but I’m afraid that the hospital’s policy will not be as understanding. I also have to be objective with my job or I’ll be in trouble as well, so I hope you and your lover would come up with some sort of an arrangement so your punctuality and professionalism won’t be compromised,” Dr. Hwang says.

 

Sunggyu repeatedly nods, bowing apologetically. “Yes, Dr. Hwang. I understand. I’m really, really sorry.”

 

Dr. Hwang nods and as she walks away, Sunggyu almost falls. His legs feel like they’ve turned into jelly because of how fast he ran from the parking lot and because of the reality check from Dr. Hwang. Jinki hurries over to Sunggyu’s side and asks him if he’s okay.

 

“I’m fine,” Sunggyu says, holding onto his friend’s shoulder for support until he’s feeling stable enough.

 

“Is everything okay with Woohyun-shi?” Jinki asks in concern.

 

“He’s fine. Everything’s fine. He’s just being such a handful these past few days. He’s just being really needy,” Sunggyu says.

 

Jinki nods, “Maybe you should talk to him.”

 

Sunggyu shakes his head adamantly.

 

“It’s okay. This is the only time he’s being like this and I don’t want to make him upset. I’ll just come up with something so I won’t be late anymore. Do we need to do rounds?”

 

“Yeah, I’m done with half of the rounds for this morning,” Jinki absentmindedly answers, still worriedly looking at Sunggyu.

 

“Thank you so much, Jinki-yah,” Sunggyu says.

 

They start walking to begin the other half of their morning rounds.

 

“Sure. But Sunggyu, how is your sideline internship with Dr. Lee’s research coming along? You’re not showing up late there too, are you?” Jinki says.

 

Sunggyu stops in his tracks, remembering that he has to call Dr. Lee and tell her that he won’t be able to make it tomorrow.

 

“Can you give me a minute, Jinki? I have to call Dr. Lee! Woohyun has a check up tomorrow that I can’t miss. Just...wait a minute!”

 

Through his small eyes, Jinki watches Sunggyu hurriedly go back to the fellow room. He scratches the back of his head, thinking to himself that he and his girlfriend aren’t going to have children anytime soon. Jinki thinks that internship and babies are things that shouldn’t be meshed together.

 

♡

 

“Did you manage to get the whole day off tomorrow?”

 

That’s the first thing Woohyun asks the moment Sunggyu enters their house. He had a very busy day at the emergency room today and he’s pretty sure that he’s going to collapse soon. Hearing Woohyun asking him about tomorrow is just making him feel even worse. He kicks off his shoes and makes a beeline to the bedroom, opting to take a warm shower and go straight to bed despite it still being too early to sleep. Woohyun would probably pester him to eat dinner but he doesn’t have an appetite right now. All he wants is to shut the world out and have some much needed sleep.

 

I’m so tired. I’m so tired. So tired. Tired.

 

But of course, his plans aren’t going to go accordingly because as he’s undressing, he could already hear Woohyun’s footsteps and his voice following him to the bedroom. He tries to hurriedly get his towel but he’s too late. Woohyun is already standing in the doorway, a frown on his face while his hands are on his hips.

 

“I was talking to you, Gyu-gyu. I asked you a question,” Woohyun says. “Did you get the whole day off tomorrow? For the babies’ checkup?”

 

Why is Woohyun even asking this? Of course, Sunggyu has no choice but to get a day off tomorrow or he’s going to have to answer to Woohyun’s wrath. When Sunggyu talked to Dr. Lee on the phone a while ago, she was completely fine with letting him miss tomorrow but expressed that it would be a once in a lifetime opportunity to witness something like that and it would greatly help him with his future endeavors as an aspiring neurologist. Upon hearing that, Sunggyu almost wanted to take back everything he said about getting a day off but Dr. Lee spoke again.

 

“But of course, discovering the genders of your triplets is also a once in a lifetime opportunity. Congratulations on being a father, Sunggyu-shi. I hope you’d have a great day tomorrow.”

 

“Yes, Woohyun. I did,” Sunggyu finally answers after being in a trance for a few seconds.

 

Woohyun smiles widely, moves closer and kisses him on the cheek.

 

“That’s really good to know, Gyu-gyu! I was sure you won’t be able to go with me but you came through. Dinner's almost ready. Don’t take too long in the shower, okay?”

 

Woohyun exits their room and Sunggyu is left standing there, feeling completely stupid that he even tried to avoid the younger. What made him think that seeing Woohyun would just annoy and tire him even more?

 

Woohyun is your personal ray of sunshine, stupid. If anything, you need him now more than ever.

 

♡

 

Two boys and a girl.

 

True to what Woohyun’s been feeling, they’re indeed going to have two boys and a girl. Baby number one and three are indeed boys and baby number two is a girl. The moment Dr. Byun announces that, Woohyun is unable to contain himself and cheers at the top of his lungs while a transducer probe is roaming on his gel-covered baby bump. Sunggyu could only laugh in amusement because first, his boyfriend’s guess on the genders of their babies are correct and second, Woohyun is just being so cute (but when is he not cute, anyway).

 

“You’re very lucky to get a mix, Woohyun-shi. You don’t have to get pregnant again if you don’t want to,” Dr. Byun says, laughing along with Sunggyu as she wipes away the gel on Woohyun’s stomach.

 

Woohyun sits up with the help of Sunggyu while he beams brightly.

 

    “I know, it’s like winning on a pot luck game, right?!” Woohyun says. “I have a question, though, Dr. Byun.”

 

    “Yes, what is it?”

 

    “Would the triplets coming out the same order as we named them in my womb right now? Like would baby number one come out first and so on?” Woohyun curiously asks.

 

    Dr. Byun smiles and beckons them back to sit by her desk.

 

    “It really depends on their position when you go on labor, Woohyun-shi. The triplets still constantly change their position, so until your due date, we really don’t know which baby’s going to come out first or last.”

 

    “Oh…”

 

    “Do you have any more questions?” Dr. Byun says.

 

    “One last thing!” Woohyun says.

 

    Dr. Byun looks at him expectantly before he says, “Um, I’m wondering if I really can’t drive. I mean, everything seems okay and I don’t feel like the triplets are going to want to come out soon. They’re very comfortable in my belly, you know, so yeah, I’m wondering if I really have to be dropped off everywhere.”

 

    Sunggyu raises his brows at Woohyun while Dr. Byun looks at Sunggyu.

 

    “Woohyun-shi, you are in the danger zone. We’re not saying that you’ll really have premature labour, but it’s more of a pre-caution. It’s not based on how you feel because these things are pretty unpredictable. If you get stressed on the road, it could trigger your contractions so I really do not recommend you driving around on your own.”

 

    “I could ride buses and trains, right?” Woohyun says.

 

    “Yes, as long as you don’t go on them during rush hours where there are too many people. You’ll be fine since other commuters could help you if anything unexpected happens,” Dr. Byun answers.

 

    “Okay, thanks, Dr. Byun!”

 

    “You’re welcome! I’ll see you and the babies in two weeks!”

 

    They say their goodbyes and make their way to the parking lot with Woohyun chattering away about how he and Sunggyu have to go baby shopping soon now that they know what they’re having. When they’re already in the car, Woohyun suddenly goes quiet and slowly turns to Sunggyu.

 

    “Dr. Byun says that it’s okay for me to take the trains and buses. You don’t have to drop me off every morning, Gyu-gyu.”

 

    “No, it’s okay,” Sunggyu says, shaking his head.

 

    “Look, I know that you’ve been showing up late to the hospital because of me and my inability to wake up on time and I really feel bad about it, so you really don’t have to drop me off every morning,” Woohyun says.

 

    Sunggyu turns so that he could really look at the younger in the eyes.

 

    “Woohyun-ah, your safety is more important than me showing up on time, okay? I know that I’ve been really caught up with my ambition to be a doctor for so long already. For the longest time, I’ve been pushing you and our relationship in the background so I could pursue this dream. But I can’t do that anymore since I now have you and three other little humans relying on me. I need to stop thinking about myself only. I have to set my priorities right and you are my top priority now. You and the triplets.”

 

Sunggyu ends his little speech by taking Woohyun’s hand in his and placing a soft kiss on it. Woohyun is actually tearing up because of what Sunggyu said. It’s true that for the longest time, Sunggyu’s been pushing their relationship to the background to follow his dreams. They were supposed to get married when Sunggyu graduated from med school but no marriage proposal came from him even months after the graduation. Woohyun actually took the initiative to propose only to be turned down by Sunggyu, saying that he still had a lot to accomplish and would want to settle down once he could fully give his attention to him. Since Woohyun loved Sunggyu so much, he just smiled like an idiot and said that it’s okay. He would wait. But all this time, Woohyun has been secretly clamoring to hear those words from Sunggyu.

 

You are my top priority now.

 

For years, he’s been aching to be more important than Sunggyu’s ambition and even if his boyfriend already said those very words to him just seconds ago, he still can’t fully believe it.

 

“Say that again, Sunggyu,” Woohyun breathes out.

 

“What?” Sunggyu looks utterly confused.

 

“Say that I’m your top priority.”

 

Sunggyu blinks but obeys nonetheless.

 

“You’re my top priority, Woohyun-ah.”

 

Woohyun lets out a soft sob, looking away  from his boyfriend to wipe the uncontrollable stream of happy tears gushing out of his eyes. Stupid pregnant hormones.

 

“I’m sorry,” Woohyun sobs. “I’m just so...so happy, Gyu-gyu. You don’t know how much this means to me, you saying that I’m more important than your med school or your internship or your residency or whatever. I’m so happy, thank you, Sunggyu.”

 

Woohyun hugs him and sobs on his shoulder. But instead of feeling good for making Woohyun happy, Sunggyu feels remorseful.

 

Just how much has he been neglecting Woohyun for him to react this way after hearing that he’s Sunggyu’s top priority now?

 

Author’s Notes: Surprise update! They’re having two boys and a girl!!! Long chapter, eh? I was just so motivated after reading your nice comments~~ thanks for the upvotes, guys!!! See you in the next one!