Hana and Seol drag Jaemin to his room, leaving Eddy and Hope in the living room.

"Hope." Eddy calls her, but his phone rings.

He goes to the balcony and she heads to the kitchen to get a drink.

"Jongin wanted you to stay." Seol startles her,

"What?"

"He was calling you," Seol says,

"I didn't hear him." Hope mumbles, shaking her head,"It's fine, Jihyun wants to talk to them, it's better to give them privacy."

"Hope." Seol sighs, "What exactly did Jaemin tell you?" Recalling Jaemin whispering to her before dragging her out of her apartment.

"Nothing." Hope brushes it off.

"Seriously, Hope. You came to your anniversary party with Taehyung, rather than your husband. You barely spoke with Jongin, and left with Jaemin. You took Haechan to your appointment, did you even tell Jongin about it?" Seol raises her voice, 

"Why are you avoiding my cousin?" Hana asks, leaning against the kitchen door, Eddy awkwardly hovering behind her.

"How's Jae?" Hope deflects,

Hana doesn't let her, "He's showering, but what's going on with you?"

"Taehyung and I have been staying baby-sitting Jayden for the last week, since Junmyeon and you went to visit his grandma." Hope starts, pointing at Seol. "I haven't seen the elders in years, I was catching up with them. We all left with Jaemin. I went to my appointment with Haechan because he was the one who dragged me. Now if you're done interrogating me like a fu*king criminal, I'm leaving." Hope tosses an empty water bottle in the trash, stomping out of the kitchen.

"Hope, we're trying to help," Seol stops her.

"Help? You're both looking at me like I've committed a fu*king crime." Hope sneers, shaking off Seol's arm.

"Because you're fu*king shutting us out. Why?" Hana yells,

"Hana," Eddy calls,

"We're a fu*king family, Hope. We've spent our lives together, but we've never seen you cry. Is that how much you trust us?"

"Jihana," Eddy warns,

"I'm sorry." Hope calmly says,

"I don't want an apology, Hope. I want you to fu*king trust me." Hana yells. The loud shouts drowning out the front door opening.

"You wouldn't understand the first of my problems, Hana. You've never had to doubt Eddy's feelings for you. You've never been anyone's second choice. You're always the first choice, unlike me. I'm terrified my husband will wake up one day and realize he doesn't want me anymore. I'm terrified he's going to blame me for trapping him in a loveless marriage. Can you help me with these problems? Can you, Seol? None of you can. Forcing me to talk only hurts, why don't you fu*king realize that?" Hope explodes,

Taehyung hurries to wrap his arms around his best friend, "It's me, I'm here,"

Haechan and Bomi glare at the others as Taehyung carefully picks Hope up and heads out without sparing the others a glance.

"I recall warning everyone." Haechan starts,

Bomi instructs them to take a seat.

"Did we not inform you about her pregnancy being declared high-risk? She can't be fu*king stressed or she could lose her fu*king child. Did you not understand those simple words?" Haechan seethes.

The front door slams open and a set of angry footsteps head their way.

"This issue is between Hope and her husband. You might feel privy to her life, but you're fu*king not. You think you're eligible to poke your nose into her business, but you're not. Just because everyone runs to her with their problems, doesn't mean she's obligated to do the same." Taehyung chastises Seol and Hana, before storming out.

Kim-Byun apartment,

Baekhyun pulls out a manila envelope from his suit jacket, emptying the contents on the coffee table in the middle. Jongin and Jihyun are shocked seeing several pictures of them in compromising positions. Jongin is further shocked to see pictures from his wild nights mixed in.

"We can explain-"

"These were left on Heeyoung's desk today. Because there wasn't a return address, I looked inside." Baekhyun pulls out a picture from his jacket, flipping it over and sliding it to Jongin.

Don't delude yourself.

You'll never match up to Lee Jihyun,

The funny thing about the past, it always catches up.

You're next, Byun Heeyoung.

"Whoever this is, they're clearly trying to create misunderstandings between Heeyoung and you," Baekhyun states.

Jongin gives him a grateful look, gathering the pictures.

Baekhyun and Jihyun head to the balcony while Jongin goes to his study. After hiding the envelope in his safe, he heads off to find his wife.

Walking out the building, Jongin sees a familiar SUV drive off. He's not sure if he's imagining, but he sees his wife in the passenger seat.

"CEO Kim." Bomi stiffly greets,

Jongin turns towards Haechan and his wife exiting Building E.

Jongin nods at the two,

"Hope is one of the most important people in my life, I won't tolerate anyone hurting her." Haechan glares at the slightly shorter male.

"Heeyoung is the most important person in my life, I would die before thinking of hurting her." Jongin snarls at the younger male,

A low whistle turns their attention to Jaemin, "Hope doesn't need people dying for her. She wants them to love her as much as she loves them."

"What are you doing?" Bomi questions, afraid of him driving drunk.

"I don't want to be here." Jaemin yawns,

"Why not?" Haechan asks, keeping his eyes on Jongin.

"Hope isn't here." Jaemin states as the rest of their friends join them.

Jongin frowns as Jaemin turns to him with a mischievous smirk,

"We'll see everyone later. Be careful, Jaemin." Bomi steps in, signaling Seol take Jaemin away, not liking the look on his face.

Jaemin chuckles at her obvious intentions, "It's a shame, the doctor couldn't identify the gender today. Hopefully, Whopper cooperates better next visit." Jaemin ignores the glares directed at him, enjoying the look on his cousin's face.

"What are you talking about?" Jongin asks, confused.

"Hope's appointment today." Jaemin pauses, "Oh, she didn't want to disturb your important meeting with JHT." He nods, his eyes drifting to the couple exiting Building D.

"Oh look, Your true love. Lee Jihyun. I pity my Hope, who'll only be a rebound to you." Jaemin pitifully sighs,

"Don't open your mouth, if you're going to sprout crap." Jongin grits, trying to keep his emotions in check.

"But am I? Come on, bro. A year ago, you were crying over Jihyun, claiming no woman could ever come close to her. You once drunk-dialed me, begging Jihyun to give you one chance. That was a few days after your engagement." Jaemin pauses, subtly glancing over Jongin's shoulders, "Feelings can't be erased, but they can shift, like a, uhm a plug. Hyung unplugged from Jihyun and plugged it to the next available source, who happened to be Hope. However, feelings linger, like the way your eyes always linger on Jihyun. Whenever you laugh, the first person you search for is Jihyun. If you hear she's hurting, you feel the pain on her behalf, right? Why don't you accept you're in love with Jihyun and Hope is deluding-"

"Jaemin." His sister scolds, but he ignores her.

"Hope will never be Jihyun and your feelings for Hope will never amount to your love for Jihyun." Jaemin provokes,

"You're right, Heeyoung isn't Jihyun, nor will she ever be." Jongin declares, stepping close to Jaemin, "What I feel for Heeyoung is indescribable, my feelings for Jihyun don't even come close what-" Jaemin cuts him off with a wave, his eyes focused on the SUV.

"Hyung." Jaemin's formal tone confuses Jongin, "I couldn't care less, but the one who needed to hear you has already left." Jaemin chuckles, pointing at the SUV driving off.

"Hope." Bomi gasps, shocking Jongin as realization hits,

Jongin turns around, furious, but his cousin is happily skipping into his car.

"Hyung, I promise I'll take good care of my Hope and whopper." Jaemin waves as Seol drives off.

"They're on their way," Minseok informs, reading through Sehun's text.

"Has he even been home?" Kyungsoo wonders, looking around the clean apartment.

"According to his sec., Jongin hasn't left his office unless it's for a meeting." Jongdae sighs, recalling his father's warning about Jongin's erratic mood.

"He's fired over 20 people this week." Junmyeon adds,

"Does this have anything to do with Heeyoung's 'business' trip?" Yixing asks.

The group snaps their heads towards Baekhyun and Chanyeol.

Baekhyun takes a long sip of his beer before narrating the events of that night to them.

"Why the fu*k is he always surrounded by drama?" Kyungsoo deadpans, pitying his taller friend.

They pause hearing the front open but the footsteps are too light to belong to Sehun or Jongin. Sure enough, Heeyoung walks in.

"Heeyoung!" Chanyeol wraps his arms around her.

"Oppa." Heeyoung smiles, glancing over the rest of the group, "Lawyer Oh?"

"He's on his way." Jongdae answers,

"How was your trip?" Baekhyun asks,

"Exhausting, but successful." She informs him, still wrapped in Chanyeol's arms.

"Oppa, can I use you as a pillow?" Hope groans.

Chanyeol chuckles, ruffling her hair, "Maybe after you've showered." He teases,

"Save me some food." Heeyoung orders, dragging her suitcase away.

"No one tell Jongin, we'll surprise them." Jongdae cackles.

~

"We're here," Sehun announces, dragging in a stone-faced Jongin.

"Bro, when was the last time you showered?" Jongdae scrunches his nose at Jongin, however, the older doesn't spare them a single glance on his way to his bedroom.

"He fired another dire-"

"Shh." His friends shush Sehun, ears pointed towards the master bedroom.

"Jongin had the rooms soundproofed." Sehun reveals, earning disappointed groans.

"What's up?" He asks,

"Heeyoung is back," Chanyeol informs him.

"Is it safe for us to stay here?"

"We'll leave after we're done eating." Minseok suggests. For the first time, they don't jump at the food, rather eating extremely slowly.

~

Jongin doesn't bother turning on the lights, tossing his clothes in the hamper on his way to the bathroom. Seeing the bathtub filled with bubbles, he notes to thank his friends and steps into the warm water. He's sitting down when a loud gasp startles him, and someone emerges from under the water.

Heeyoung harshly coughs, wiping her eyes and trying to get her breathing under control. Jongin snaps out of his daze, sliding beside her to pat her back. His sudden presence startles her, but he's quick to calm her.

"Did you fall asleep?" Jongin frowns, pulling her to sit between his legs. His palm unconsciously trails to her stomach, which has gotten bigger in just days.

"I missed you, so much." Jongin sighs, wrapping his arms around her and setting his chin on her shoulder.

"I love you." Jongin presses a kiss on her shoulder. Feeling her stiffen in his arms, he feels a twinge of pain.

"Heeyoung Park, I love you today, and I will keep loving you tomorrow," Jongin confesses, frowning at the sad smile on her face.

"We're not leaving the water until you understand that." Jongin states, her answer a casual nod.

"I'm serious," Jongin tightens his arms around her. 

"It's not good for Whopper to stay in cold water." Heeyoung lightly chuckles, 

Jongin pouts, realizing the biggest flaw of his plan, "I'll think of something until you understand how much I love you." He says, pressing a long kiss to her lips.

"I missed you," Jongin contently sighs at having her back in his arms. 

"Me too."

~

"What are you doing?" Heeyoung asks when her husband hugs her from behind.

"Since I can't keep you in the bathtub, I'm transforming to a koala and clinging to you." He cheekily winks,

"There's no need." Heeyoung tries to pry his arms away, but he's adamant.

"There is. I missed you so much, I want to make up for our lost time." Jongin buries his face in her hair,

"You're going to tire real quick." Heeyong mutters,

"I'm not, each day without you felt like a decade." Jongin stubbornly says. 

"Jongin." Heeyoung shakes her head, exiting their room.

"Love." Jongin repeats.

Not hearing any noises from the living room, he whispers close to her ear, "I think they left."

"Don't do that." Heeyoung frowns, trying to squirm away.

"Did I hurt you?" Jongin worries, but seeing her bright cheeks, he smirks.

"After dinner, I promise." He suggestively whispers. Embarrassed, Heeyoung speed-walks to the living room with her laughing husband. The couple is lost in their world until they're startled with their front door loudly slamming shut.

"Was Jongin worrying for nothing?" Baekhyun wonders,

"Knowing Heeyoung, she probably has an ironclad custody contract and is waiting for Jong to mess up." Sehun comments, snatching the last piece of fried chicken.

Chanyeol rebuts, "She wouldn't play with her child's life."

"He's right." An unexpected voice surprises them,

The man leans against the wall, "Where's Hope?"

"On a business trip." Baekhyun snaps at the younger male,

"Seriously?" Jaemin raises an eyebrow,

"She went straight to her room," Chanyeol informs him. 

"Did she eat?" Jaemin worriedly asks, revealing a lunchbox in his hand.

"No, she didn't." Chanyeol answers,

"This is for her." Jaemin sets the lunchbox on the table, scanning the room, "Where's Jongin?"

"With-" Jongin's laughter echoes through the long hallway. Jaemin pauses at the sight of Jongin clinging to Heeyoung. The couple lost in their own bubble fail to notice or acknowledge their friends. Without another word, Jaemin storms out of the apartment, the door slams shut behind him.

"You're still here?" Jongin whines, ignoring his wife's scolding look while his friends roll their eyes, surprised at the quick mood change.

Jongin takes a seat on the sofa, pulling his reluctant wife into his lap.

"Someone left you food." Chanyeol says, pushing the lunchbox towards Heeyoung.

"Jaemin?" Heeyoung asks, taking out the carefully packed Tupperware, while the others warily glance at the CEO's darkening expression.

Oblivious to her husband's mood, Hope sends Jaemin a long thank you exit, along with a selfie of her stuffing her face.

"Let's not ask Jaemin to cook for you anymore." Jongin remarks,

"I don't have to ask Jae to cook for me." Heeyoung pouts,

Jongin pinches the space between his eyebrows, "Lov-"

"No one cooks better than Jaemin. His dishes are not only delicious but also healthy for Whopper and I." Heeyoung states.

"Hee-"

Heeyoung looks at her husband, "Jaemin is doing his job as my friend by looking out for me. The questions he asked that night were some I wanted answers to. He's looking out for me. For my friends, my happiness is what matters. If they don't think it's with you, they will do everything to help me see why."

Jongin exhales, unable to find the right words to rebut.

While the two are engaged in their discussion, Jongin's friends sneak off. Sehun and Jongdae have to be dragged away with hands clamped over their mouths.

"What he said that night were all lies, baby. I lo-." Jongin assures her,

"It doesn't matter, because I love you." Heeyoung smiles up at him,

"I love you more." Jongin smiles, leaning down for a kiss, their food pushed away briefly.

"Why wait another 6 months?" Taehyung wonders, studying Hana and Eddy's wedding planning board. Heeyoung gives him a sharp look, but he brushes her off, turning to Seol,

"Didn't you say her dress is ready?" Taehyung asks the designer,

"Why are we waiting again?" Hana turns to her fiance, who shrugs not knowing the exact reason for postponing their original wedding date. (Hana didn't want Heeyoung to be uncomfortable with her pregnant belly, but no one's going to bring that up.)

"I'll call the wedding planner." Hana pulls out her phone.

"I'm glad we didn't send out the second invitations." Bomi winces, looking over the samples.

"Ma'am, someone's waiting for you in your office." Heeyoung's secretary informs as she's walking past them,

"Thanks!" Heeyoung recognizes the smile on her secretary's face,

"Good afternoon." Heeyoung smiles at the frowning man behind her desk.

"You left without a goodbye." Her husband whines,

"I had a breakfast meeting, and I didn't want to wake you up." She states, hanging her coat and purse, as he watches her.

"You should have, my days don't start well until I see you." Jongin declares,

Heeyoung sighs, cupping his cheeks to run her fingers over the bags under his eyes, "You need to catch up on your rest."

"I sleep best with you." Jongin cheekily flirts, earning a light chuckle.

He uses this chance to carefully pull her into his lap and rub his palm over her baby bump.

"Whopper is getting bigger," Jongin notes,

Heeyoung nods, resting a hand on her bump.

"Why didn't you tell me about the appointment?" He asks her,

"I felt slightly dizzy, so Haechan dragged me to the doctor. Because it was sudden, I didn't tell you since you had an important meeting."

"Nothing's more important than you and our baby." Jongin honestly answers, not liking her tensing at his declarations.

"Shouldn't you be at your office, CEO Kim?" She asks, glancing at the clock on her desk.

"The president is handling my meetings and I'm days ahead with the paperwork." Jongin chirps, leaning down for a kiss,

"I'm supposed to be working." She rejects him,

"Exactly." The two are startled to see Jaemin at the door,

"Jae, what's up?" Heeyoung asks, trying to get off Jongin's lap, but her husband keeps a firm grip around her.

"My meeting was in the area." Jaemin walks in, "Are Hana and Eddy sticking to their first date?" He asks, taking a seat across them.

"Hyung, shouldn't you be at work?" Jaemin asks Jongin,

"I prefer being with my wife." Jongin sweetly smiles, pressing a kiss to his wife's cheek.

"Do you believe him?" Jaemin asks, carefully observing his friend,

"I love him and right now that's all that matters."

"Hope, I'm asking if you believe in his love for you, not-"

"I love Heeyoung, I understand you're worried about your friend, but don't form assumptions. I am in love with Heeyoung and, I would never hurt her." Jongin interrupts,

Jaemin scowls, ready to retort but Heeyoung jumps in, "Thanks for worrying for me, Jae."

"Of course, baby. Don't forget dinner at Park-Song." Jaemin reminds, on his way out.

"You should head to work." Heeyoung sighs, trying to pry her husband's arm off,

"You're stuck with me, my love." Jongin laughs, tightening his arms around her.

"I'm being serious, CEO Kim." Heeyougn frowns, "You need to worry about your company and your-"

"You're the most important person in my life." He sincerely states, surprising her with a soft kiss.

The two are disturbed with light knocks. Heeyoung tries to slide out of his arms, but Jongin doesn't let her, even as his secretary walks in. The man sets a laptop bag and a briefcase on the desk, before leaving the office.

"What are you planning?" She asks.

He helps her get comfortable in her chair, rounding the desk to the chair across her.

"I don't have to be in my office to work." He winks, pulling out his laptop.

~

"Babe, I don't mind you staring at me, but you can't blame me for my actions." Jongin teases, continuing to scan the document in his hand.

"I was staring at my handsome husband, sue me." Heeyoung rolls her eyes,

"If you say so, love." Jongin smirks, heading to the door. He locks the door, rounding the desk and pulling her into his arms.