PO 51

When it was time for lunch, the employees flocked to the nearby restaurant. Woojeong, who had remained alone in the workshop, sat on a chair at the meeting room table, rested his arm as a pillow, and lay down on it.

Since the day he had started coming back to the workshop, when he had suffered from severe indigestion, his body hadn’t been well. He had thought he would recover in a few days, but his stomach kept feeling queasy, and he often vomited. Because of that, the days when he skipped meals like today had increased.

Woojeong slowly blinked his eyes with a pale face that had changed over a few days. The time when he had kept food in his mouth all day already felt like a long time ago.

He had only eaten a little of the rice porridge that Madam Kwak had made for him in the morning, but he didn’t feel hungry. He thought it might be better to close his eyes and sleep for a while. Woojeong, who had closed his eyes, soon raised his body and sat up.

“Ah…….”

When he felt heat at the tip of his nose, he quickly raised his hand to touch it. Lukewarm moisture dampened his fingers, and he smelled blood.

Woojeong quickly pulled out a tissue and pressed it under his nose. Why had his body been like this these days? Even in the morning on his way to work, his nose suddenly started bleeding, and he had only been able to leave the house after changing clothes.

“Oh, are you having a nosebleed?”

Yoon Hyunjun, who had been walking down the stairs, saw Woojeong and was surprised, and he ran over. He pulled out several tissues, handed them over, and gently supported the back of Woojeong’s head.

“Why are you suddenly bleeding like this. Didn’t you sleep?”

“No. I think the inside of my nose is just a little sore.”

Because Yoon Hyunjun pressed near his nose, the nosebleed stopped quickly. Woojeong, who had stuffed a rolled tissue into his nose, quietly gathered the crumpled tissues scattered on the table.

“Why are you sitting like this instead of going to eat lunch?”

“My stomach doesn’t feel well, so I’ll eat later. Did you eat, Director Yoon?”

“I have an appointment, so I’m on my way to eat now. If your stomach doesn’t feel well, you should eat porridge. Isn’t there a porridge restaurant nearby?”

“I’ll go eat when I feel better.”

Yoon Hyunjun looked down at Woojeong with worried eyes, and he asked again.

“Shouldn’t you go to the hospital?”

“How could I go to the hospital just because of a little nosebleed?”

“No, you said your stomach doesn’t feel well too. Don’t suffer needlessly, at least get some medicine.”

Woojeong, whose condition had not been good, made an excuse that he would go later, but Yoon Hyunjun said he didn’t know what Han Jaegang might say later, and he pulled him up.

When Woojeong came outside with Yoon Hyunjun, he lifted his head to the sky. The bright sunlight heated the back of his neck. It was weather that made him naturally think of the word hot. Yoon Hyunjun led the way, saying they should go to a hospital nearby.

“Jaegang went on a business trip, right? When did he say he would come back?”

“Tomorrow.”

“I see. For now, go inside and get examined. I don’t think I’ll be able to go into the gallery today, so if something happens, call me.”

Woojeong only saw off Yoon Hyunjun after he had repeatedly given instructions. Perhaps because he was a close friend, there was a similarity in their tone. A few days ago, when he had left for the business trip, Han Jaegang had also said something similar.

<If something happens, call me. Because it’s a distance where I can get there in half a day by plane.>

The Snow Reflection Residence without Han Jaegang felt empty and desolate. Although the time alone at home was only a few hours from after work until he fell asleep, as the days passed, the emptiness caused by his absence grew larger.

Even when he went to bed early, he couldn’t fall asleep. Woojeong, after tossing and turning for a long time, ended up going to Han Jaegang’s room. When he lay on the bed that still faintly held his scent, he often fell asleep.

“Mr. Lee Woojeong, please enter the consultation room.”

When Woojeong came to the hospital, he finished his consultation with the doctor and received a simple blood test and urine test. While waiting in the waiting room, Woojeong thought it was fortunate that the results came out quickly, and he went toward the consultation room.

The doctor with graying hair carefully checked the monitor and then turned to Woojeong.

“You said you had indigestion and frequent nosebleeds. You also said you had severe fatigue?”

“Yes.”

“I see. For now, the test results didn’t show any findings that made us suspect a disease. But just in case, there was one additional item we tested, and the answer came out from there.”

The doctor paused briefly, then smiled gently, and opened his mouth again.

“It would be good for you to receive a detailed test at the Pheromone Center. You are pregnant.”

Although he had clearly heard it, Woojeong couldn’t immediately understand the doctor’s words.

“……Pregnant?”

“Yes. It’s certain the urine test.”

At that moment, the nosebleed that had stopped ran down again. The doctor quickly pulled out several tissues, held them, and approached the flustered Woojeong.

“My. Nosebleeds can also be one of the symptoms of pregnancy. If it happens too often or if the bleeding amount is large, you must receive an obstetrics and gynecology consultation.”

“…….”

“You have heard of morning sickness, right? Indigestion, queasiness, and headaches can also happen. Since it is not the stage to use medicine yet, it would be good for you to eat food that digests well.”

“Doctor. Just now…… did you say I am pregnant?”

Woojeong, hoping he had misheard, asked the doctor again. The doctor, checking whether the nosebleed had stopped and observing Woojeong’s condition, answered him clearly.

“Yes. Pregnancy is certain.”

•••

“Woojeong-ssi.”

“…….”

“Woojeong-ssi?”

“Yes?”

“What are you thinking so deeply about? We’re going to start this work in the afternoon. Check the material inventory and bring some over.”

At Chief Choi’s words, Woojeong suddenly jumped up from his seat. When he went to the material warehouse with a memo in his hand and checked if the listed items were there, he collapsed weakly as if the strength in his legs had been drained.

“Haa…..”

Since he had come back to the workshop, Woojeong had was dazed, he feltthat his mind had slipped away. The doctor’s words hovered like an echo by his ears and didn’t disappear.

How had something like this happened? Woojeong’s pupils shook with unease as he retraced the past. Because Han Jaegang had always gave him contraception pills, he had never thought that something like this could happen.

“…….”

He suddenly remembered the day when he had vomited after taking an emergency contraceptive pill. Because he had thrown up after some time had passed, he had thought there was no need to take it again, but should he have taken it again that time?

“Woojeong-ssi, what are you doing sitting there?”

“Yes? Just for a moment…….”

“The ones written below are hard to find, right? Those are over in that corner. Come here.”

Chief Choi, who had come to look for Woojeong because he hadn’t come back quickly, entered the storage and gestured. Perhaps he thought that Woojeong had been wandering because he couldn’t find the items listed, he pointed at the materials arranged on one side of the storage and told him the names one by one.

“Chief.”

“Mm?”

“……How did you feel when you first learned that you were pregnant?”

Woojeong, who had been gathering the items he needed to take, cautiously spoke. He even forced a smile because he worried that it might seem strange. Chief Choi, who had fallen into thought for a moment, smiled awkwardly and spoke.

“That time? We heard it together at the hospital. The two of us hugged in front of the doctor and cried a lot. It felt strangely moving. But why do you ask that suddenly?”

“Just….because I’m curious.”

“That’s true. Ah right. I need to order this again. There’s not much left.”

Woojeong tried hard to focus on the explanation, but the words didn’t reach his ears properly now. He stared for a long time at the shining ring on Chief Choi’s finger and then turned his gaze away.

He had wanted to ask what someone should do if they became pregnant when they didn’t know if the other person wanted it, but he couldn’t bring himself to ask that of someone who looked so happy.

Late at night, when Madam Kwak had fallen asleep and the house had become quiet, Woojeong went toward the bathroom. He pulled out the box he had buried deep in his pajama pocket and spread out all the contents inside.

It was a pregnancy test kit bought from the pharmacy. Although the doctor had told him he was pregnant, he felt he could only believe it if he confirmed it with his own eyes.

Woojeong placed the three used testers side by side and waited anxiously for the results to appear. When the control line appeared first on the tester, his heart began to pound as if it would explode. A moment later, next to the control line, a faint line began to appear.

“Haa…….”

Woojeong, who had been staring intently at the tester, picked it up with a trembling hand. Without caring about his burning heart, the faint line grew clearer as time passed.

Woojeong lifted his hand to cover his mouth. When he saw it with his own eyes, his heart dropped to his stomach.

It was a pregnancy. A child…… had come into being.

Faced with a reality he couldn’t believe, he didn’t know what he should do right away, and he felt lost. Woojeong, who had been staring at the tester for a long time while sitting on the toilet, cleaned the bathroom and came out.

Even though he had skipped dinner, he felt dizzy and nauseous. Woojeong went toward Han Jaegang’s room. The room, which its owner hadn’t returned to for nearly a week, felt empty and silent.

Woojeong trudged to the bed and curled up lying down. Perhaps the bedding had been changed, and instead of his scent, there was only a cool fragrance, which left him disappointed.

Han Jaegang was someone who rarely revealed his inner thoughts. Woojeong, who was clumsy at dealing with people, found it difficult to guess his feelings.

He had given much without expecting anything in return, and he had accepted Woojeong staying by his side as if it were only natural. That point had left Woojeong confused.

The Han Jaegang of the past and the Han Jaegang of now were somehow different. Woojeong also clearly felt that. He knew Woojeong’s feelings, but he had never given an answer to it.

Perhaps he hoped that days without incident would continue like now. If he told such a person that he was pregnant, how would he react?

He felt like vomiting. When Woojeong, who had been curled up lying down, raised his body with difficulty, the bedroom door opened quietly.

“…….”

Han Jaegang, who had said he would arrive in the daytime tomorrow, was stepping into the bedroom in this late night. Even when he saw the startled Woojeong, he asked calmly as always.

“What are you doing awake at this hour?”

“……How did you already come back?”

“I moved the schedule forward a little. Have you been well?”

Han Jaegang cupped Woojeong’s cheek gently and asked with a slightly husky voice. Woojeong looked up at him as if he couldn’t believe it. He felt joy that he had moved up his schedule and come back, enough to make him forget for a moment the burden he couldn’t handle alone.

Woojeong, who suddenly jumped up from the bed, threw his arms around him with all his strength. Han Jaegang, who had looked surprised at the sudden embrace, wrapped his arms around Woojeong’s back and held him in return.

“I missed you. I really missed you a lot…….”

Woojeong whispered softly as he leaned his face against the broad chest. He felt emotions that words like “missed you” couldn’t describe.

“Did you wait for me?”

Han Jaegang asked leisurely and buried his face against Woojeong’s neck. He felt Woojeong, who was held in his arms, nod.

As he inhaled the pheromone scent that rose from Woojeong’s soft skin, his heartbeat regained its calm rhythm.

Woojeong’s pheromones, unusually rich and fragrant today, wrapped him softly. It was as if they praised him for finishing the schedule quickly and even moving up the flight to return.

Han Jaegang brushed his lips lightly against Woojeong’s nape and closed his eyes. With the faint sound of his breathing and Woojeong’s warmth filling his arms, he finally realized that he had returned home.