“Ugh……”

Ha Jun, who had been sleeping, turned her heavy body as she felt a tingling pain in her stomach. When a new kind of pain she had never experienced before shook her lower abdomen once again, Ha Jun’s eyes flew open.

“Labor…… is it……?”

Finally……, it’s time to go to the hospital!

Ha Jun carefully got up, holding her belly. In one corner of her room was the hospital bag she had prepared long ago based on internet searches and Hyun Ju’s advice.

Ha Jun picked up the hospital bag and opened the door.

She entered the kitchen, where the savory smell of fermented soybean stew wafted, and grabbed the arm of Bok Seon, who was standing in front of the sink doing something. Bok Seon turned her head and greeted Ha Jun happily.

“Is the baby’s mother up now? Let’s eat.”

“Grandmother, my stomach hurts.”

“Are you hungry? Hehe~ Is our little blessing saying she’s hungry?”

“No. It hurts.”

Ha Jun shook her head, rubbing her belly and pointing to the bag in her hand. Bok Seon’s eyes widened.

“You’re in pain? Is it coming? Oh my~ I see. I thought it was time looking at your belly. Let’s eat quickly! You need food for strength. That’s how the baby comes out smoothly.”

Bok Seon hurriedly scooped rice and took out side dishes from the refrigerator.

“You need to eat a spoonful quickly.”

“Okay.”

The sharp pain was no longer felt, but anxiety and anticipation were growing.

Ha Jun ate diligently as Bok Seon instructed. And in the meantime, she didn’t forget to call a taxi on time with her mobile phone.

After eating, Ha Jun got into a taxi with Bok Seon. Her destination was not Seocheon at the edge of Chungnam where she was, but a fairly large obstetrics clinic in Gunsan, Jeonbuk.

As she looked at the sea passing by outside the window, Ha Jun’s face alternated between expectation and worry.

Will the baby be healthy? Will it be a boy or a girl? Who will it resemble? When will we meet, today? Tomorrow?

Various curiosities filled Ha Jun’s small mind. As if understanding all of Ha Jun’s mixed feelings, Bok Seon kept saying, “It’s alright, it’ll be fine,” while stroking and patting her arm.

The nurses and doctor were all perplexed at the words that this was her first hospital visit while being full-term.

At the doctor’s words to check the fetus’ condition first, Ha Jun immediately lay down in the ultrasound room.

“For now, the contractions you’re having are false labor. It means they’re literally fake contractions. Now, if you look at this ultrasound……”

There was a clicking sound, and the black and white screen showed a fetus in a clear human form.

“Based on the baby’s head circumference, abdominal circumference, and leg length, it’s about 34 weeks now, weighing approximately 2.3 kilograms. It’s just right. Your belly is on the larger side. The amniotic fluid volume is sufficient…… Five fingers, five toes, all normal. From what I can see on the ultrasound, the fetus is very healthy.”

“Ah, that’s such a relief……”

A long sigh of relief flowed from Ha Jun’s mouth.

I don’t know what the circumstances are, but she seems intent on having the baby and shows plenty of affection, so why hasn’t she been coming to the hospital?

The doctor’s puzzled gaze lingered on Ha Jun for a moment before turning back to the ultrasound screen. What was important to him now was not the mother’s story, but the condition of the fetus.

“You’re almost full-term, and you’re having false contractions, so I recommend coming to the hospital once a week until delivery. And…… Ah~ This little one is covering and not showing well. Just a moment.”

The ultrasound machine rubbing the belly moved this way and that. The fetus inside the belly also showed an adorable appearance on the screen, moving its arms and legs as if playing.

“How cute……”

“It moves well, doesn’t it? Very healthy. Good heartbeat, no murmurs…… I need to show you the most important thing…… Ah! It’s a handsome boy.”

“Oh my, it really was a boy!”

“Did you want a boy?”

“No, not particularly, but my grandmother kept saying it was a boy, that it was a boy’s belly. It’s really amazing.”

“While I can’t explain it medically, the wisdom of the elderly is truly remarkable.”

Ha Jun showed a happy smile at the doctor’s kind words.

And shortly after, as soon as she finished her first examination and came out, Bok Seon quickly grabbed and supported Ha Jun.

“Is the baby coming now? How’s your belly? Does it hurt?”

“Not yet, they say. They say it’ll be about another month. We brought the bag for nothing.”

“Oh my~ It should come out without much trouble……”

“Grandmother, look at this.”

Ha Jun held out the maternity handbook she had belatedly received.

“Here, this date is the expected due date, and this is our baby’s picture.”

Bok Seon clutched her chest upon seeing the words written as the due date. And then she immediately held the black and white photo inserted in the handbook.

“Oh my~ It’s so handsome! How can our little blessing be so good-looking~”

“They say it’s a boy. You were right, grandmother.”

“Just looking at this face, it’s a handsome boy. Yes, it must be a boy.”

Bok Seon smiled contentedly. Although the black and white ultrasound photo was blurry, the baby’s features clearly showed handsomeness.

On the taxi ride home, Ha Jun and Bok Seon couldn’t take their eyes off the baby’s ultrasound photo.

“It’s beautiful……”

The shape of the nose bridge and forehead in the blurry photo looked exactly like Yi Hyun’s. Ha Jun was looking at the photo endlessly with eyes full of affection, but she couldn’t help feeling anxious in one corner of her heart.

Please, just don’t let them find out……

No, no. He must have already forgotten me and be in the midst of wedding preparations. The wedding time mentioned in the article I saw then was summer. Right now.

“Yes, it’ll be okay now. Don’t be afraid. Baby, let’s meet healthily next month. Okay?”

As she gently rubbed her belly and spoke affectionately, the baby moved as if answering, swish, swish. A happy smile bloomed across Ha Jun’s face at that cute movement.

After returning home, Ha Jun took a picture of the ultrasound and sent it to Hyun Ju and Yeon A. Then, following Yeon A’s message full of excessive fuss, a call immediately came from Hyun Ju.

“Unnie!”

– I saw the ultrasound picture. Oh my~ Our nephew is so handsome! Are you okay?

“I’m fine. They say the baby is very healthy too.”

– That’s a relief…… I feel better now. Everything will be fine now. It has to be. So stay well with peace of mind. Okay?

“Thank you, unnie.”

– And it looks like I won’t be able to come this weekend. Yeon A said she has something at home too, and my kids’ colds just won’t go away.

“It’s okay. Don’t push yourself.”

– I’ll come see the baby when it’s born next month. Ah~ I wonder how pretty it will be? I’m so excited.

“It’s very pretty. You saw the ultrasound picture, didn’t you?”

– Haha, there’s a hedgehog mom here too. I always say my ugly ducklings are pretty too. To a mother’s eyes, her children are always pretty no matter what. Ah~ I have to go now. I’ll contact you later.

“Okay. Unnie.”

A bright smile spread across Ha Jun’s face as she hung up the phone.

Now, just a little longer and she can meet her baby.

A week later, Ha Jun visited the obstetrics clinic alone. No one had come to see her during the past week.

As if making all her worries so far seem foolish, Kim Yi Hyun had given up on Lee Ha Jun long ago.

Indeed, I was only worth that much, so why was I so swayed by the word love that came from his mouth? It was complicated and also a great relief.

“It’s a relief…… Baby, it’s really a relief. Right?”

Ha Jun kept caressing her warm belly.

Among the pregnant women who came with their husbands, she was the only one sitting alone, but her expression looked brighter and happier than anyone else’s.

“Our pretty baby, you’ll show us your handsome face again today, right? Hm?”

Just as Ha Jun was whispering affectionately to her belly, the nurse’s voice was heard.

“Lee Ha Jun patient. Please come in.”

“Yes.”

As she entered the examination room, the kind-looking doctor who had examined her last time greeted her with a smile.

“Hello. How was your week?”

“It was fine. Sometimes there was a tingling pain…… um, about three times.”

“I see. Today we’ll do the final month check-up. Fetal movement test, electrocardiogram, blood test, urine test, X-ray……”

The doctor’s explanation continued. Ha Jun listened attentively to the explanation and nodded her head.

“When you go out now, the nurse will guide you. We’ll see each other again after you finish all the tests.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Ha Jun bowed slightly and went out. The tests were of various types and took longer than expected.

After finishing the fetal movement test, which took the longest time, Ha Jun headed back to the examination room with her tired body.

“Welcome. All your test results are good. Now we’ll do an ultrasound and internal examination lastly.”

“Yes……”

“Are you tired?”

“A little. Since my body is heavy, even moving a little is tiring.”

“But when you give birth and raise the child, you’ll think, ‘Ah~ it was comfortable when I was carrying the baby inside.’ Haha~”

Ha Jun smiled gently at the doctor’s words that didn’t seem like a joke.

“But I think it will be so happy.”

“That’s true. Make your husband do all the hard work. Women inevitably have to do the hardest parts of pregnancy and childbirth, but men can do everything else. That’s how paternal instincts develop faster and the mother recovers quicker.”

“……Yes, I will.”

“Let’s go to the ultrasound room.”

“Okay……”

A little while later, Ha Jun left the hospital with a new ultrasound photo in hand, along with the news that the internal examination results were good and natural childbirth was possible as the fetus’s head circumference was small on the ultrasound.

Although her body was heavy, her steps were very light.

“Grandmother really gave you such a good prenatal name. Baby, how can our little blessing be so good, gentle, and healthy? Hm? Baby, thank you so much.”

Love overflowed from Ha Jun’s eyes as she looked at the ultrasound photo of the fetus, which was clearer than last time. The touch that caressed her swollen belly was also full of undisguised affection.

The happiest moment of her life was being renewed every day because of the baby in her belly.