Su-yeon hastily grabbed her phone.

She turned on the app that tracks her menstrual cycle and checked the date.

It had already been over two weeks since her expected date.

Her heart pounded.

Maybe the moment she had longed for and anticipated had come, but Su-yeon suddenly felt afraid.

“Unni, what’s wrong? Why are you trembling like this?”

Su-jin’s voice sounded distant.

Still, that voice pierced through and, just then, Su-yeon realized that she was trembling.

She clutched her phone, its screen dimmed in the dark, as if it were a lifeline.

And when a bit of sanity returned after a long while, she looked at Su-jin and spoke.

“Su-jin, I…”

“…”

“I…”

“Yeah, tell me, Unni.”

Su-jin sat by the bedside, aligning her gaze with Su-yeon’s.

When their trembling hands overlapped, the trembling became even more palpable.

Su-jin’s face, already gripped by fear, became even more tense.

Facing that expression directly, Su-yeon finally managed to speak.

“Can you buy a pregnancy test for me?”

“It’s the fifth week. From the ultrasound, the baby’s position looks good, and there don’t seem to be any major issues. But you mentioned pain in the lower abdomen?”

The doctor, who had been examining the black screen, turned to Su-yeon and asked.

“Ah…”

Yes, it hurt.

Although the words to answer immediately lingered in her mouth, Su-yeon stared at the screen, forgetting that she had to say them.

On the entirely black background, occasional gray masses passed by.

The fifth week. Did that mean somewhere in that speckled place, a baby was taking its place?

Really, was a child coming to me?

It still didn’t feel real. Her mind went blank, and her chest swelled with a strange emotion.

“Ms. Pregnant.”

If the doctor hadn’t called out, she might have spent the whole day just staring at the monitor.

“Ah, yes. That’s right. My lower abdomen and back have been hurting continuously.”

Her belated response sounded somewhat absent.

The doctor nodded a few times and suggested discussing the details in the examination room.

Su-yeon followed the nurse’s guidance, changed into a gown, and sat back in the examination room chair.

After a brief examination of the monitor, the doctor made eye contact with Su-yeon.

“Fever, chills, and headaches are symptoms that can appear in the early stages of pregnancy. The issue is the lower abdominal pain. Is it so severe that it’s hard to endure?”

“No. It’s not so severe that I can’t endure it.”

“Then there shouldn’t be a big problem. As the uterus expands with the pregnancy, pain can occur. However, if the pain becomes severe, it could be related to a miscarriage… In case such a situation arises, don’t hesitate to come to the hospital.”

“So, you mean…”

Listening silently to the doctor’s words, Su-yeon slowly blinked her eyes.

Every time her eyelashes flickered, her pupils wandered aimlessly.

It was a reaction often seen in anxious people.
The doctor, drawing from their past experiences, spoke as if guessing out of habit.

“Lower abdominal pain doesn’t necessarily mean it’s connected to a miscarriage. It happens only with severe pain, so you don’t have to worry too much.”

“No. No, Doctor. It’s not like that…”

“Yes?”

The doctor opened their eyes wide.

It was perplexing to respond differently than the majority of expectant mothers who, upon hearing stories related to lower abdominal pain, showed the same reaction. The doctor answered according to the manual, but it was surprising that it wasn’t the case.

The doctor gazed intently at the expectant mother before them. She still had a complex expression.

However, perhaps because it wasn’t the expected answer, she didn’t seem as anxious as before.

Although there were many waiting patients or expectant mothers, the doctor couldn’t rush.

With moist eyes filled with uncertainty, the doctor’s eyes, swaying without revealing their intentions, prevented the words hanging at the tip of their tongue from being spoken.

Silent time passed a bit more.

At the end of it, the expectant mother hesitantly spoke.

“Really, am I really pregnant?”

The question, heard after a long wait, was quite anticlimactic.

For a brief moment, it felt like there might be a hollow laugh, but soon after, the doctor could only nod gently and smile.

“Yes, you’re pregnant. Congratulations.”

It was a routine greeting given to expectant mothers encountered several times a day.

At the short and unremarkable words, the expectant mother’s eyes started to shimmer again.

Now, I could sense what emotions were contained within them.

“Thank you. Really, thank you, Doctor.”

It was deep earnestness or gratitude.

“Unni, is there anything you want to eat?”

“Huh? No, not yet…”

“What’s good for pregnant women? I remember studying it before.”

Su-jin’s face, now recalling something, was illuminated as if it were her job.

She couldn’t erase her smile, but Su-yeon still didn’t feel the reality.

Pregnant? A child is in my womb…