Part 3 - END
Burning Brighter
When Changmin arrives at Victoria’s door that evening, he’s so nervous he can feel his fingers trembling. This was a now or never thing—he’s only giving himself one chance to succeed. He raises his fist and knocks softly on her door.
There’s no reply.
It’s dark inside, and Changmin is pretty sure Victoria has fallen asleep again in her bed. He tries knocking once more, but there is still no reply.
Taking a deep breath, he opens the door and walks inside. It’s pitch black in the room, the curtains he opened that morning had been pulled shut again. Somehow, it shakes a nerve in him. He walks over to her bedside and kneels beside it.
“Victoria?” He whispers.
The girl stirs a little but doesn’t wake.
Changmin smiles, gently tugging at her shoulder. “Victoria, wake up. We have to go.”
To his surprise, Victoria turns towards him and grabs his hand. She pulls his hand to her face and tucks it beneath her cheek, smiling innocently with her eyes closed. “Changmin-ah, five more minutes?”
He sighs. Reaching with his free hand, he brushes her hair out of her eyes and leans in feather a kiss to her cheek. “No, Victoria. You have to wake up now, my mom is waiting for us.”
Victoria peeks one eye open, lips upturned. “Your mom? Why?”
“I’m introducing the two of you formally. We’ve been dating for several months now so I think it’s about time the two of you met.”
“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?!” She complains, sitting up abruptly and angrily punching at Changmin’s arm. “If you told me we were going to meet with your mom, I would have made sure I got up and ready on time!”
“Kyuhyun didn’t tell you?” Changmin asked. “I remember telling him to.”
Victoria clenches her jaw.
“Looks like he forgot.” Changmin laughs. Victoria looks like she’s about to cry.
Dinner actually runs by pretty smooth.
Changmin is constantly filling Victoria’s plate with food, switching out the milk if it doesn’t look warm enough, and watches out for any spots or stains, even though she doesn’t make any.
From the corner of her eyes, she can feel Changmin’s mother watching them closely.
“Is our Changmin treating you well, Victoria?”
Victoria smiles widely, nodding with her hands clasped together tightly in her lap. She doesn’t know why she feels so nervous, as though she’s doing something wrong and will be caught in front of headlights at any second.
Sensing her insecurity, Changmin reaches over and takes one of her hands into his.
“Mom, I wanted to let you meet Victoria tonight because I have something to announce.” Changmin says.
Victoria turns to search into his face. She can’t really read the expression he’s wearing, but she thinks she knows where this is heading.
“What is it, Changmin?”
Changmin feels Victoria’s hand squeezing his, but he ignores it. “I’m going to ask for permission from Victoria’s mom tomorrow; permission to marry her.”
Victoria feels her heart stop, her entire body stiffening.
“I—“His mother begins, but doesn’t quite know how to respond. It was a good thing; her Changmin was growing up, trying to build his own family, but she felt a bit odd about it all. “Don’t you think it’s too early?”
“No,” Changmin replies honestly. “I’ve waited a long time for this.”
Both women are shocked. Hadn’t they only started dating a few months ago? They’ve met before that, yes, Victoria thinks, but it couldn’t have been much longer.
His mother thins her lips into a line but gradually it forms into a small smile. “Well, congratulations then Changmin. You’ve got yourself a beautiful bride and—”
“There’s one more thing,” Changmin intercepts her. “Victoria is pregnant.”
“What?” His mom says before she even realizes.
Victoria feels a headache building up but Changmin doesn’t let go of her.
“Don’t misunderstand,” Changmin immediately begins to explain. “We aren’t getting married because I got her pregnant.” Which was, honestly, the whole truth. “It just… somehow happened this way. I’m marrying her because I want to, mom.”
“Have you told her mother yet?” His mom asks.
Changmin grimaces. “We were going to do that tomorrow.”
“How far along are you, Victoria?” She asks.
Victoria breathily replies, “fourteen weeks.”
Noticing her discomfort, Changmin’s mom immediately sends him a glare and scolds him. “Why would you wait until fourteen weeks to do this? You should have done this sooner! Take Victoria upstairs to your room and let her rest; she looks horribly exerted. I’ll deal with you again later.”
Changmin grins and nods, standing and lifting Victoria into his arms, hooking his hands under her knees. She grabs onto his collar with one hand and throws the other over his shoulders. “I can walk,” she protests.
The boy ignores her, as per usual.
When he lowers her into his bed, she takes a good look around his room. It’s simple, neat, filled with brown and cream colors. She had imagined his room to be a lot brighter than it is.
Changmin closes the door and joins her on the bed, pulling his covers up to her chin. “That wasn’t so bad, right?”
“I almost died.” Victoria jokes.
He laughs, sliding one arm behind her so that she can rest her head against his chest. “I think we’ll do better tomorrow, now that we’ve had this experience. “
It’s quiet—peaceful and tranquil. This is a place that makes Victoria feel safe; it smells like Changmin, feels like Changmin. Even the comforters are softer here. “Why are you doing all this for me?” She asks sleepily.
Changmin considers the question. “Because I want to keep you by my side.”
Those are the last words Victoria hears before she falls asleep in his arms. His voice echoes in her ears, like a warm ballad. She hasn’t slept so peacefully in weeks—it’s been months since she’s last felt so at home.
Victoria wakes up to Changmin’s arms wrapped around her, his chest against her back. She can feel the slight tingle of his warm, even breaths against her neck and his forehead in her hair.
Trying not to wake him up, she slowly tries to unwrap herself with no success. Eventually she gives in and just lies still, holding Changmin’s large hand in her own. When she looks up at the clock on the small drawer beside his bed to see the time, she sees a new set of clothing.
Changmin’s mom must have prepared them for her.
“Hey,” she says, tapping on his arm.
The boy grumbles and hugs her tighter. “Too early.”
“Wake up,” Victoria chuckles, “I think your mom is waiting for us.”
Sighing, Changmin finally lets her go and plants a small kiss on the skin revealed at her shoulder. “You first.”
Maybe it’s because he’s made their relationship official in the eyes of their parents, but Victoria has realized he’s been a lot bolder with his actions. She doesn’t dislike it; as a matter of fact, it amuses her and makes something in her chest flutter.
She blushes again, humming in reply and getting out of bed.
As Changmin is getting ready, she get thirsty and decides to head downstairs by herself. Changmin’s mother is in the kitchen, decorating a dish she must have just finished cooking.
“Are you hungry, Victoria?” She asks when she sees Victoria walk in.
The smile Changmin’s mother presents to her is kind; a lot softer than it was the night before. Victoria nods a little.
“I made fish,” Changmin’s mother tells her, “I know pregnant women don’t like the smell of fish much, but the fat in fish is really good for you. There’s skim milk in the fridge, go ahead and grab a cup from the cupboard there. You didn’t eat much last night so you have to make up for it in the morning.”
This treatment isn’t unfamiliar. Victoria’s mother treats her the same way—like a precious jewel in her palm, very caring and very loving. Not knowing where she got the urge from, Victoria walked up to her and hugged Changmin’s mother from behind.
“Thank you,” she whispers, feeling happier than ever. “Thank you for having such a great son.”
Changmin’s mother laughs a little and pats Victoria on the cheek. “No, thank you,” she replies gently, “thank you for being here and making my son such a great man.”
Needless to say, Victoria’s mother was actually a lot easier to deal with than they had anticipated. She had approved of their relationship to begin with, so she wasn’t surprised to hear about the proposal.
The only part that had stumped her was the pregnancy, but Kyuhyun made sure she didn’t have an opportunity to explore her anger in that department. He brought out his inner actor and played the part of the protective brother; shouting and hitting Changmin so much that even their mother felt bad for the young man.
Victoria was thankful, so thankful for everyone around her.
Her mom joined her in bed that night, taking the space beside her and holding her hand. They spoke about her childhood years; about her brother, about their family vacations, about her father, and about the time they spent apart.
The night ended in a mess of tears and tissues, but they shed off the words they could never have said to each other before and learned to love each other more.
This child had brought so much to Victoria, she didn’t know if she could ever give the child enough.
“You’ll be a great mother, Qian-ah,” her mother whispers against the back of her hand. “I believe the two of you will be great parents.”
On the night of their engagement party, Changmin is coaxed into drinking so much that he’s entirely wasted by the time the party ends.
Drunkenness never results in a happy ending.
Kyuhyun carries his former-best-friend-now-almost-brother-in-l
“A couple of cups from each of you,” Victoria corrects, leaning against the frame of the door, “he’s had more than a few dozen all together.”
Her brother laughs and, with haze in his eyes, stumbles out of the room. As he passes by Victoria, he slips a hand on her shoulder and squeezes it. “Keep a secret for me?”
Victoria tries to hide her confusion. “Sure.”
“Changmin… he’s not as strong as you think.” Kyuhyun tells her. “He needs a little reassurance every now and then, too.”
“Alright,” Victoria replies. “You’ve had a lot to drink too. Don’t stay up too late.”
After Kyuhyun leaves, Victoria wets a towel and starts wiping Changmin down. He’s sticky from the alcohol and sweat and reeks of alcohol—this is a scenario she used to deal with often; since when had this feeling become so foreign?
Halfway through, Changmin appears to have waken and grabs her hand, stopping her.
“I wish that I could be the baby’s father.” He breathes slowly, and his breath is filled with the sting of alcohol. “I wish I could have been the one to have given you the baby—the one that gave you a reason to smile so beautifully again,” Changmin says, biting down on his lip.
Victoria shakes her head, her lips crooked into a heartwarming smile. “Any man can give me a baby, Changmin,” she replies, “but only one man could ever convince me to keep my child; that man was and still is you.” Victoria tells him.
Changmin stares into her eyes—clouded by an emotion Victoria is afraid to interpret as wavering.
“It doesn’t matter if you are my baby’s biological father or not—you’re the one that’s standing beside me, you’re the one that taught me how to love myself. You are the reason I’m smiling again, Changmin; you’re the one who showed me I can be happy, even when I’m afraid.”
She reaches out and cups his face. Changmin leans his cheek into her palm, still gazing into her eyes. Victoria sighs and leans forward until their lips brush gently against each other.
“Sleep,” she tells him “We’ll talk when you’re sober.”
Changmin nods and allows his eyes to fall close. Never had he wanted to the night to pass by faster as much as he did that night. When morning came Victoria was already gone but, somehow, his worries had left him as well.
He wonders how such simple words could have given him such comfort. Maybe it was because that was the first time Victoria was wholly sincere with him; he could see it in her eyes, feel it in the warmth of her palm and the softness of her lips.
Victoria cared about him and, perhaps, that was all that mattered.
“Shim Changmin, I am not going to wear a wedding dress while I’m twenty three weeks pregnant!”
Said man scrunches up his nose, continuing to flip through the catalog of wedding outfits proper for a nice photo shoot. “But I think you would look really nice in one. We need to get these done before our actual wedding!”
Victoria picks up the nearest cushion on the couch and throws it at him. “No. I said no! I’ll look so big and fat and you’ll be skinny and handsome. No!”
He rolls his eyes. “You look gorgeous, don’t worry! You’ve hardly gained any weight from the baby, Victoria. You don’t eat enough, you know? All the adults complain about that to me all the time.”
“Look at my stomach!” Victoria grumbles, sticking out her tummy and pointing an accusing finger at it. “Fat!”
Changmin rolls over to her side and places his hand over her round belly. “That’s the baby, honey. Not fat. There’s not a single ounce of fat in you. See? The baby agrees. He’s kicking!”
“You’ve been so excited ever since we found out it’s a boy.” Victoria glares. “I wonder what your reaction would have been if it was a girl.”
In response, Changmin widens his eyes with a big grin, cupping both of Victoria’s cheeks into his palms and exclaiming, “a girl! She’s going to look so much like you! Wow!”
Victoria laughs and shoves him away, trying to hide the blush spreading wildly on her face.
“I would love the child no matter what gender it may be,” Changmin then tells her, wrapping his arms around her and leaning in close. “As long as the baby is yours and mine, I’ll love the baby with all my heart.”
“But the baby isn—“
“The baby is mine!” Changmin claims, pulling back and looking into her eyes. “I don’t care what anyone says; now that you’re mine, the baby is mine, too.”
Victoria feels her heart being engulfed in warmth, spreading throughout her body to the tips of her fingers. She reaches up and kisses him, softly at first but deepens it when Changmin responds. She wants to thank him, give him everything that she could ever offer. One day, she wants to carry his child and give him a baby of his own, too.
“So, you’ll wear the dress I just chose out?”
“No.” Victoria replies firmly.
Changmin frowns. “I don’t care. We’re going and you’re wearing it.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Victoria retorts. “Not until the baby comes out and I’ve lost all the weight I’ve gained.”
“We’re going!”
“No!”
“Yes,” Changmin argues. “And that’s final.”
Victoria narrows her eyes at him, pursing her lips. Changmin reaches over and pinches them between his fingers, then bends forward and kisses her. Then she laughs, and he laughs, and the routine starts all over again.
Above them lies a series of open windows; they are transparent to the world, but to Victoria they have now become a shield. They protect her from the harsh rays of the sun, but allow her to venture into the light without having to be afraid.
They don’t close the blinds anymore; Changmin no longer has to worry about opening them.
To Victoria, Changmin will always be that invisible support that she always longed for. He taught her to stop hiding and reach out—how to shine, burning hot and bright.
And now, together, they burn brighter than the sun. Forever and always.
A/N: Woot! Done! Heheh. I hope the ending did not disappoint! I really tried my best ;__; Now, as for my upcoming story, I really am having a hard time choosing but I think I'm going to go with my Yongguk/Victoria story. Unhealthy B.A.P obsession lately. Please do support that story as well when I post it~ ^____^ see you then! -Xue
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