(Or How To Be a Drama Queen   by Kim Kibum)   A/N : schmoop for a change wooohooo A/Ns : anyway, I think I'm gonna finish this series first before I head out to kill the other one. (And this chapter is kind of, yanno, a prelude for the last chapter. The last chapter that actually started this universe at all.) A/Nss : Comments are needed ! ** Pre-Jun   1. 12 weeks   It was a very... strange feeling, so to speak. That was in between excitement and joy and fear, but mostly went along with a ', it's real'. I didn't really know what to say when the caregiver and Jihye, our surrogate--who was lying on the examination table with her bare, round belly slicked with ultrasound gel--, looked up at me, both were giving me a similar kind of smile--I thought they sorta made a perfect print ad for the clinic right then--like I was expected to give a coherent two cents. Which again, I wasn't able to. (Jinki would, but he's not here. Thanks to the damn cold germs that prevented him to go near to the pregnant Jihye.)   I mean, knowing this.. this thunder of galloping horses-alike sound I heard (150 beats per minutes and it's all looking good--said the caregiver) and that blob of an oblong shape with four tiny-funny looking limbs--were they even ?--on the 12 inches black and white screen I saw were parts of an entirety of a being, of a baby--my baby--, all words just ceased to exist.   "Kibum.." I felt Jihye's warm hands circled my wrist as she tugged me back into the realm of nowsville "Would you like to get the pictures printed ? Doctor Anna asked.." "Uh ? Yeah.." I said, embarassingly a little shaky, before I got myself together and finally smiled a bit to Jihye "Yeah.. Of course." "Jinki would like to see." She added, eyes gleaming with sincerity. "Right." That was just what I was about to say. I laughed nervously to her again and blamed it all to the bloodrush that made my head spin from earlier. *   Jinki was coughing a laugh to an old Chris Rock show re-run on HBO--with our favorite quilt and scatters of tissues on his lap--when I arrived at the loft, five ultrasound pictures weighing inside the front pocket of my messenger bag. "Have you take your evening medicine yet ?" I asked him as I walked closer to the back of the couch where he sat, then reached my hand out to feel his forehead from behind. It was still a little warm. Jinki looked a little surprised at first, but smiling blindingly nonetheless as he arched his neck back to look up at me, before he spoke with a runny nose blocking his words "Yes, mommy." (Which sounded more like "Yed, bommy.") There's an obvious teasing undertone at that which made me press my lips together in a straight line. Feeling something akin to giddiness, but also hesitancy at the same time. All these things still seemed a little unreal. And Jinki just had to remind me. "Howd the ultradound ?" Jinki finally, verbally asked me as I sat down beside him. I stared back at his expectant eyes for a while, before returning his raised eyebrows with a long exhale, and I fished inside my bag for the pictures. "It's all good, the doctor said." I said after I handed him the pictures "It still looks a little like alien, but.. it hasn't fully developed yet in twelve weeks, so it's supposed to look like that." I recited what the caregiver said. Anything that stuck in my mind, at least. "And I heard the heartbeat." I continued, taking a long, deep breath "It sounded kinda like horses galloping into a war.."   I swallowed again and turned to watch Jinki as he went through the ultrasound pictures, holding my breath unconsciously as I did so. 'Cause boy, was I nervous. And it was when I finally saw Jinki's crescent eyes slowly smiled from his cheek, and finding that little glint of adoration as he said softly, a bit nasally "It'd a cude dittle.. blob." that it finally hit me. That it's real. We're gonna have a baby.   Jesus. Mary. And Joseph.   Holy-.   "..Kibum ? Why are you spacing ou--" "We're having a baby, Jinki." I said numbly, staring at and through him as my fingers might or might not trying to strangle his wrist and stop his blood vessel from working. "Yeah, I figured ?" Jinki was amused, to say the least "Dince dhree month ago ?" "I mean.." I gulped hardly, before I finally really looked at him, and started to gape like a goldfish "I mean.. I.. I haven't even told my mother yet... . She's going to kill me. . I need to call her." 'Cause I already foresaw a chewing out for at least half an hour before a stern request for me to be absolutely sure to fly her here when the baby's born. "And We're.. God.." I felt like banging my head to the wall "We don't even prepare things like a.. in crib or a in.. stroller or a in.. pacifier or a.. a.. I don't know.. diaper rash cream ? "And . I know I have that Pottery Barn catalog from the mail last month. They have sale for the kids line. Do you know that one ? I thought I still saw it lying around last week. Did I throw it away ? Have I take thrash out this week yet ? Did I place it on this drawer ? Did I--" "Kibum.." "Yes ?" I turned to Jinki, sights blurry and head spinning once again from all the panic haste. "It'd 'ere." Jinki showed me the darn catalog I was speaking of which he retrieved from the vacant space of the couch on his other side. Then he nodded slooo~wly to me, saying a little too carefully "Breadhe." Which made me realize I had my mouth hanging open and that I had to have that crazy eyes I always got whenever I freaked out and in a full drama-queen mode which looked so hideous by the way I didn't even know how Jinki could even put up with me.
  I watched Jinki as he finally smiled after I closed my mouth and swallowed in my embarassment. That I could just stared back at him, at that gaze of affection (and a little mirth) he's always giving me in a wrong time, wrong situation, which finally, could only make me sigh and melt. "God, I in' love you." I said as I grabbed his face and smashed our mouths together. All teeth, dry lips and a little snot. It's not our best kiss--well, obviously--, but it tasted just the same (if maybe a little salty.)   I snatched the catalog from Jinki's hand as soon as I let him go and started to go through the pages right after, but not missing the proud smirk thrown my way and a low, amused "I figured dhat doo." Then Jinki blew his nose. *   2. 24 weeks   There's this look I especially loved on Kibum--that beat the other thousand-faces-I-loved-on-him in a tight competition--. And that was when he was focused on something. How his eyes would often hold a firm, sharp gaze. How he's worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. How his fingers just had to play with something, anything--his pen, his stress ball, his shirt button, his other hand--that was on his reach to help him concentrate. (And I thought I fell for him just like that. From small motion--and notion--that ended up in explosion.)
  But this time, a little different from the other, Kibum was all worked up not because of a new challenge or a work, but because of a call to her mother. Because just like her son, My mother-in-law could also be a handful, at times. "...Yes. Okay. Calm down. We have that already. Yeah. Wha-- witch hazel ? No, I don't think we have that one yet. But I'm sure they have it here. No.. no, Ma. Okay.. okay. Go charge your phone, then we'll talk again. Ye~s. Bye, Grandma."
    I already got back to my notebook while lying down on my stomach when there's a click of a phone, followed by two soft steps and finally, a faint thud as Kibum threw himself on the side of the bed and landing his head on my lower back. "God. My mom's such a drama-queen." He sighed loudly. I tried to hide my laugh with a scoff "I see." But a painful, stinging slap on my side told me the attempt failed. "Ouch, bum." "I hate you." He mumbled. "Like I believe." I counter-attacked too easily. He just laughed a little before soothing the spot he abused before with his thumb. I hummed in approval. "How's the name hunt progress ?" Kibum asked, rolling to his side as he's trying to look at the screen of my notebook.
  So the thing was, we'd been trying to come up with a name for the baby, that'd been kicking the