twelve! More than the air he breathed, Taeyong loved his pregnancy. From the mornings he woke up with the sudden urge to vomit, till the exhaustion he felt when he climbed on the stairs. The stomach was still flat, but feeling the warmth of his own skin that protected the baby against the lines of his palm, it was priceless. He was at the beginning of the pregnancy, which meant that the path will let him grow into a new person, discover new feelings and strengths, and also a new self that will exit the door of the walls that he created around himself. 

Even if the baby couldn't be felt yet, the whole idea of protecting a little sprout in the fertile earth of his organism made him gratified. When he ate something, it would come out right away and the only thing he could really eat was eggs and milk products, yet, he was mainly eating instant food. Different smells would disgust him, which lead to a new tsunami of unpleasing feelings that the embryo rejected to the point when Taeyong remained over the toilet bowl for hours.

In one of these days, the young man was buried in the amount of library information, among the huge number of books that made a delightful feeling in his rib cage. His own hands were holding a shabby book, he read it so many time that he could recite it. "Cinderella". It was such a cliche story that even kids weren't reading it anymore, but when if you read between lines. Why was Cinderella considered the protagonist? She was the antagonist. In fact, she was the one lifting our hopes, but then, they get ruined by the cruel reality. 

"Jaemin, I will never let you make the same mistakes I did. I was naive enough to fall in the most obvious trap ever, and the result of it will reflect on you. Do not hate me when you grow up and realize that all the babies have a father and you don't. I will love you enough for two parents. When life will hit you in the back with a sharp knife, remember that you got hit because it thought you were weak, but the moment you stand up, your pain will return to those who caused it. Don't look back at them, just aspire for something they will never reach. I love you, little ladybug", with this soft voice that only he could hear, Taeyong ran his palm over the stomach one last time, before returning to his old faded pages.

Chasing the ink of the typing machine that printed the words in the paper, he almost missed the upcoming call from one of the few people he still contacted with. Placing the bookmark in its spot, the item fount itself resting on the wooden table, before bringing the dark device to his ear. Lee parted his dry lips to greet the person from the other side, the voice came out a bit tired and low, as if the baby was sipping his energy, having the constant urge to lay on his comfortable bed, yet he had to earn a living by working. Being single wasn't easy, he had to think about the time Jaemin will be born and knowing he got a miserable salary wasn't cheerful at all.

"Hello?", Lee escaped when the screen got pressed against his ear.

"Hey, Taeyong, are you at the library?"

"Yes, why are you asking?"

"I'm in front of your workplace, I wanted to make sure you are here. I'm walking in", and then he hung up. 

Exhaling the air he hardly drank, Taeyong ran his digits through his strand to fix the hair, which he thought was a mess. Silly nature, if he only knew that the real mess was in his heart and mind, not his hair. Automatically, he tried to make himself look pretty by the meaningless hair fixation.

And then Johnny appeared from behind the tall bookshelves, with a plastic bag in his hand. The older was making sure that Lee was eating well, he was healthy and went to the doctor at least once a week, he himself talked to the doctor to be double as careful with Taeyong. The bag got settled right next to the book Taeyong was reading, and it caught the heavy sight of the massive male.

"Cinderella?", he wasn't even surprised, he just knew that the story was well known, maybe even for kids, why would Taeyong waste his time on it.

"You will be surprised but it's not a book for children.", Lee stood up from his chair, tugging a tender smile on his beatific facial features, before he decided to continue the conversation. "Why are you here?".

"I got you some cheese cream, fruits, cinnamon buns, and apple juice, is that okay? Is there anything else you are craving for?"

"Johnny", shaking his head from the side to side, Lee pressed his palms against the wooden table as well, a protesting action that could be read without any verbal fixation. "You don't have to buy me food or anything, I can take care of myself too, but I appreciate it".

"Even if you tell me how you don't need my help, I will still continue doing this. If you ask me 'why', I'd say that I care for you and the children that you carry here", with this, Seo pressed his own palm against Taeyong's stomach as if he was allowed to, he felt the urge to feel the little piece of happiness under the smaller's heart, because it was the biggest treasure and the most marvelous miracle that he ever observed. "I will go make you some warm tea okay? Where is the electric kettle?"

The taller cut Taeyong's thoughts off by spinning around and making his way to the librarian's table, the question was more of rhetorical, because he didn't need an answer to find the kettle, just like he didn't need an answer for the things he just said. It was surprising for him too, but the contact with the unborn children left a deep hollow in the fence of his heartless self, at least he thought so for a moment.

The electric kettle wasn't far away, so Lee lost Seo from his view, then sat back into his place, contemplating deepy over the unforeseen sentiments. Unexpected actions and words that were supposed to slowly sew his wounds, at least he wouldn't bleed his sorrow and mourn after the grieving and dying pieces of his soul, little pieces of himself that he started to consume, waste and lose. The started to become a new person.

Meanwhile, Johnny poured hot water in a cup, waiting for the tea to gradually become a brown shade. His hand slide in the back of his pocket, pulling out a flat pack of plastics that he ripped with his teeth, then let the white powder dissolve along with the sugar in the substance. Partly he felt guilty, but the second half of his consciousness was screaming for victory. The voices in his head were fighting as if a new war would start in the area of his meditations. He's been hesitating for a few days now, but in the end, he decided that it was the right decision.

Encircling his fingers around the hot cup, Johnny now made his way back to the pregnant being, capturing his lower lip between his pearly whites. The teacup was finally extended to Taeyong, who honestly had his skin melted under the gratifying temperature of the tea he was going to drink. His coral petals were now glued to the edge of the disposable cup, letting the warmth slide down under his pale skin, a divine taste that made his lids feel heavy and shivers to ride down his spine like the air rode the clouds into the infinite azure.

"Make sure you also eat the cinnamon buns I got you, they were freshly baked when I bought them, okay? I have to go back to work or Jaehyun will rip off my skin", the huge man bent over, brushing his dark tiers against Taeyong's forehead, which was perfectly hidden behind the bangs that reached for his straight eyebrows.<