Work Text:
Junho's eyes glanced at the clock on the wall of the living room, frowning when he realised it had been more than fifteen minutes since Youngwoo had disappeared inside, claiming she needed to use the bathroom. Leaning forward he grabbed the remote off the coffee table, pausing the ongoing whale documentary knowing she wouldn't want to miss the later part.
"Jagiya?" he called out uncertainly from where he sat, frowning when he got no response.
"Youngwoo-yah?" he called out again just as he heard the sound of the water running, the door opening moments later to reveal his girlfriend who slowly made her way over to him, raising the blanket to slip in besides him, resting her head on his chest.
"Everything alright?" he asked quietly, kissing her forehead when she nodded absentmindedly, telling him to resume the paused documentary. He saw her eyes kept darting to the clock, hands fingering the frayed edge of the blanket draped over their tangled legs, a small furrow between her eyebrows.
"Love? Something on your mind?" he asked yet again but received a shake of her head in return. They barely got through the next ten minutes of the documentary before Youngwoo let out an exclamation at the time, getting up hurriedly from where they sat and grabbed her bag, Junho getting up to grab his car keys from the hook on the wall.
"I can take a cab, it's not that late," she protested. "I don't mind," he replied but she was surprisingly obstinate, finally relenting for him to accompany her downstairs to make sure she got in safe, telling her to text him when she reached home.
He closed the door behind him when he got back, bumping into a bleary eyed Minwoo who had stumbled into the kitchen to grab a two unopened bottles of water from the fridge.
"What do you need so much water for?"
"None of your business," Minwoo replied curtly, making his way inside and slamming the door behind him, leaving Junho puzzled at the sudden behavior.
'Way for everyone to act weird today' Junho thought to himself, making his way inside his own room, stripping himself off his day clothes and donning his usual white tshirt and a pair of sweats. He hummed to himself as he brushed his teeth, leaning towards the mirror to examine the faded bruise on the side of his head from where he had bumped into the kitchen cupboard last week.
Drying his face on a towel after he was done, he turned only to knock the tube of toothpaste into the trash can beside the sink, leaning down to pick it up, frowning when he saw a huge wad of discarded tissues in it.
"The fuck," he muttered, pushing them aside with the tube, pausing when he saw a thin white stick shoved in between them. He gingerly removed it from inside, placing it on the counter only to pause after a moment.
It wasn't what he thought it was right?
He turned it over, stiffening in shock when he saw the two pink lines on the face of it. A positive…pregnancy test? It was positive, right? He picked up to examine it closely, the pink lines seeming to mock him before he dropped it on the counter, bracing himself against it. Fuck fuck fuck what was that doing in the trash of the bathroom in his room? Only Youngwoo used it besides him when she came over.
Youngwoo was…pregnant?
His mind traveled back, trying to think about how this could have possibly happened. The time he had practically lunged at her a few weeks ago when she had come back from a work trip? Or when he had bent her over her desk when they had been working late after hours? Or when she had clambered over onto his lap in the car and snogged him senseless when he was on his way to drop her home? Or when one thing had led to another when they were watching tv that night just like a few moments before and her tiny gasps and moans had soon drowned out the noises of the television?
Was there even any use thinking about it now? Wait, was that why she had spent such a long time in the bathroom before? He felt uneasy at the thought of her having to hide and take it when he was right in the next room. Wouldn't she have been scared? God had she cried in the bathroom or something? But she had been surprisingly calm after she got back even though her slight nervousness had passed through and gotten to him. Was she debating whether to tell him or not? Why hadn't she told him? She could have told him and he would have been there with her, whatever the result. After all, he was equally responsible for it.
He and Youngwoo never had had a discussion about children, heck he hadn't even proposed yet, barely managing to get into her father's good books after they had been caught kissing outside her house.
Wait, her father . God, he was going to kill Junho. Painfully and slowly with that knife of his which he used to cut vegetables for making gimbap. It wouldn't take much time for Lee Junho to soon be the late Lee Junho. The thought had him grimacing, Junho shoving the test into one of the drawers, unable to look at it anymore before he trudged back to bed, collapsing back on the mattress.
Now Junho loved kids. He could proudly say he was the most favorite uncle in his family and kids gravitated towards him with his easygoing and playful nature. He couldn't wait to have his own one day, god he would spoil them so much. But did Youngwoo even want kids? That too with him? Granted their relationship wasn't all flowers and rainbows and they had agreed to take things at a slow pace but he knew he loved her and she loved him. He wanted to propose to her so badly but he wasn't sure if it was too early to do that. Although he could very well picture life with her, the two of them together, in their own little world.
But a whole tiny defenseless human that would be dependant on them for everything? Ten little fingers and toes? A tiny voice calling out to him as Appa? Maybe it wasn't the worst thing in the world, he thought to himself and that was the last thing he thought, too tired to think anymore, eyes soon closing to a picture of a radiant Youngwoo smiling at an equally happy baby in her arms.
ೄྀ࿐ ˊˎ-
"Junho-ssi? Are you listening to me?" the question shook him out of his daze, gaze turning up to look at Youngwoo who was staring at him curiously from across the cafeteria table, her hand paused mid air.
"What happened?" she asked, Junho shaking his head, gaze dropping to her stomach before traveling back to her face.
"Sorry I got lost," he managed to say, Youngwoo smiling before she resumed her talk about the mating habits of humpback whales and something about their offsprings. Wait, was she trying to give him a hint? She had never talked about this topic before.
He opened his mouth to say something but then decided against it, thinking about his resolve from today morning. He didn't want to scare or corner her so he had decided that until she told it to him herself he wouldn't ask her anything about it. But that was all he had wanted to do for the past few hours, the question on the tip of his tongue everytime she appeared in front of him.
The sound of her chair scraping the floor had him turn his attention back to her, frowning when she got up.
"Where are you going?"
"Washroom."
"Why?" the question only earned him a quizzical look from her.
“To wash…my hands?" she offered, holding them out.
"Oh yes,right," he mumbled, turning his gaze back to his half eaten food. "Are you…feeling sick?"
"Ani."
"Sure?"
"Yes, I am sure," she said firmly before turning to walk away, throwing him a confused look but he was too engrossed in his own thoughts to notice.
He remained engrossed all the way back to his desk, making sure his girlfriend got back safely to her office before he returned to his own desk, sitting down heavily in the chair, eyes darting between the half open blinds of her office and the pile of papers in front of him.
Concentrate Junho, he admonished himself quietly, thankful for the work to take his mind off things for some time and plus he did not wish to get the attorney’s in trouble because the material wasn’t all up to the mark. Firm on that thought, he let himself get back into his work, sorting out through the received material, making notes and sending mails.
“Junho-ssi? Did you receive the paperwork for the Mono Industries case?” the question had him look up from his computer to see Suyeon impatiently shifting from one foot to another.
“Yes, a minute,” he replied, turning back and reaching for the boxes of files he had stashed aside, dragging them over. “If you could help,” he added, Suyeon nodding and grabbing a box off the table, walking back to Attorney Jung’s office, Junho following her and returning back to his desk just in time to see Youngwoo attempting to lift the remaining box off his desk.
“Attorney Woo!” he exclaimed, a bit too loudly making Youngwoo flinch and turn to him only for him to hastily grab it from her, eyes assessing her from top to toe.
“Please don't- lift heavy things,” he managed to grit out, turning to walk back into the office, leaving her standing there, bewildered.
ೄྀ࿐ ˊˎ-
The more the days passed, the more jittery Junho got around Youngwoo and he could sense she was getting tired of having him hovering around her constantly but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Just earlier in the week even after he had told not to lift anything heavy, she had managed to somehow slip past his eye, making her way downstairs with Minwoo and Suyeon carrying a much bigger box filled with files for god knows what and he had gotten up in a rush to stop her but before he could reach her, clumsy as she was, she had managed to somehow bump into someone making their way upstairs and the next thing he knew she was sprawled out on the floor in the middle of an utter mess of papers.
“I told you not to carry heavy stuff!” he had practically yelled and she had actually looked scared for a moment, curling up into herself unconsciously when he had pulled her up and sat her on the lowest step, frantic hands trying to assess if she was okay. “I didn’t notice, I am sorry” she mumbled timidly, anxious hands clenching and unclenching in her lap and he had sighed, grabbing them in his own larger one and apologized, assuring her that he hadn't meant to raise his voice at her and that he was just worried.
“I didn’t get hurt,” she said gently to ease him, sensing he was really worked up and she honestly wasn’t hurt, just a bit startled. She had resorted to listen to him though and he had never been more relieved.
Now as he glanced at her from where she dozed off in the passenger seat, her face half smushed into his jacket that she clutched to herself he debated if he should ask her before he couldn't bear it anymore. His hands clenched the steering wheel tighter, knuckles turning white, his thoughts all over the place and he flinched at the gentle touch on his arm only to see Youngwoo blinking up at him sleepily.
“Did we reach? You should have woken me up,” she mumbled, rubbing at her eyes with her fist and he couldn’t help smile at the adorable sight. “Thought I would give you five more minutes of your much needed sleep jagiya,” he said, leaning over to open the car door for her only for her to push his arm away and clamber over the console onto his lap, legs resting on either side of his thighs.
“Sweetheart what-” he mumbled, the words dying out when she leaned in to press her lips to his, hands clutching onto his shoulders. He let himself get lost in the feeling, pulling her closer so that her body pressed flush against his, groaning when she subtly rocked her hips slightly against his, whimpering into the kiss.
His hand unconsciously traveled to rest over the expanse of her stomach when she finally pulled back, gasping softly, her lips swollen and pink, fingers trailing over the shirt that covered her.
“Did that make you feel better?” she asked, making him look at her in confusion.
“You seem a lot worried about something Junho-ssi and you won’t even tell me what it is,” she mumbled, resting her head against his shoulder.
‘Yes because you are the one who is supposed to tell me about it,’ he wanted to blurt out, fingers carding absentmindedly through her hair and was rewarded with a contented sigh.
“Jagiya?”
“Yes?”
“Are you-” pregnant? Why won’t you tell me? Are you scared of my reaction? I promise I am not going to get angry or anything, just please please tell me if its really true. Why won’t you tell me, please tell me, pleasepleaseplease
-okay?”
She blinked up at him, eyebrows furrowing as her tongue darted out to wet her lips and he could see she was thinking about something.
“Why do you keep asking me that?” she finally asked, gaze breaking away from his to focus on the buttons of his shirt, fingers toying with the material.
“I am just- I am just worried-”
“But I told you I am okay Junho-ssi. Did you have a bad dream about something happening to me?”
“Ani- well- I uh found- the- the- in the bathroo-”
The sudden ring of her phone had him curse under his breath, Youngwoo scrambling to fish it out from her bag and put it to her ear, nodding and affirming something before she cut the call.
“I need to go, Appa is waiting for dinner. Can we talk tomorrow?” she offered, Junho barely managing a nod and she gave him a pleased smile, kissing his forehead softly before she got out of the car and disappeared around the corner, waving a quick goodbye to him and he could only stare, slumping back against the car seat.
How was he ever going to get through her?
ೄྀ࿐ ˊˎ-
Would you like come over for dinner today Lee Junho-ssi?
I have something I would like to tell you and Appa both.
He had read the messages almost a hundred times now since morning and the panic in him grew more with each passing second as he stood outside her front door. This was it. She was going to tell the news over dinner to him and her father and then her father was going to kill him. Right there and then. Junho was terrified of her dad as it is and now he was this close to passing out right there on her porch.
Heck he could feel the collar of his shirt dampening with sweat and the weather wasn’t even warm. He had half a mind to just turn and run back home and hide in his room and never come out again but before he could actually act on it the door swung open to reveal Youngwoo dressed in her all too familiar whale pajamas although her face looked pinched as she shuffled uncomfortably in the doorway, motioning him inside.
“Are you okay?” he asked, removing his shoes and stepping inside after her, Youngwoo nodding only to clap her hand over her mouth and rush inside into the kitchen, heaving into the sink followed by a loud exclamation from her father.
“Yah Youngwoo-yah! I told you to stay in bed,” Junho heard him say as he rushed inside hurriedly, stopping in his tracks when she turned to face him with a sheepish smile, gulping down the water handed to her.
“You are sick?”
“Since the afternoon, yes. I am pretty sure she ate something she shouldn’t have eaten when she had gone out with Geurami,” her father said, turning his attention back to the pot on the stove.
“I don’t think it's because of that.”
“Huh?”
Shit. He didn't realize he had said that out loud.
“What do you mean?” he heard Youngwoo ask him and he let out a groan, pressing his face into his hands.
“Junho? What happened?”
This was it. He couldn’t beat around the bush anymore. If it meant he would probably be digging his own grave right here in the middle of his girlfriend’s kitchen so be it.
“I know okay?! I know, I found it in the bathroom after you left my place. You don’t have to act oblivious around me anymore. Although yes I can’t wrap my head around why you would decide to hide the fact you are pregnant from me. Yes I know it's a huge thing and we aren’t prepared but why would you hide it from me? You know I would have been there whatever you decide and yet you acted like it was nothing and you didn’t listen to me and kept lifting heavy stuff and then now you are throwing up and it's all my fault but you got to-”
“Woah woah, Junho-ssi woah woah,” he heard her interrupt, small hands cupping his face, trying to get him to look at her, fingers brushing against the damp skin of his cheeks. What- damn great now he was crying. Way to be pathetic Lee Junho.
“Woah woah,” he heard her repeat, hand pushing the half drunk glass of water into his face as he grabbed it and downed the rest, pausing to wipe the back of his hand over his mouth, turning to glance at Gwang Ho who was looking at the both of them with an unreadable expression on his face before he stood up straighter to grab Youngwoo’s hand and pull her away from Junho and behind him.
“You- got Youngwoo pregnant?”
“Appa-”
“Answer me Lee!”
Junho flinched at the loud, furious tone, eyes squeezing shut as he took a step back, waiting for the slap but it never came, eyes opening slowly to find a very indignant Youngwoo standing between them, her hand pushing her father’s hand away from Junho.
“Stop it!” she shouted, gaze flitting between the both of them, pausing to take a deep breath before turning her attention to Junho who looked at her defeatedly.
“Junho-ssi. I am not pregnant. That test in your bathroom? It wasn’t mine.”
“What? Then who-” he managed to mumble weakly, not knowing whether he should be relieved or cry.
“That- it’s not mine okay? I have not taken any test and I am not pregnant. You know I am a bad liar and I would never have been able to hide such a thing from you for so many days. And Appa,” she turned to Gwang Ho, “you can’t raise your hand on him like that! It is a crime to assault someone without any valid grounds,” she said firmly.
“He said you are pregnant!”
“But I am not pregnant! I am not pregnant, you both need to calm down,” she retorted.
"Then what- what was the thing you wanted to tell us?" Junho blurted out, breathing heavily.
"Oh that. It was about an overseas conference invitation. CEO Han had asked me if I would be interested in going. I wanted to discuss with you both first though. But we can talk about that later," she announced firmly, grabbing Junho’s hand and pulling him upstairs with her, shutting the door of the room behind her.
Junho practically collapsed on the bed, hands shaking a bit as he pulled her closer to stand in between his legs, Youngwoo glancing down at him. “You aren’t pregnant for real?” his voice was small, muffled against her shirt and he swallowed heavily when she shook her head, all the tension from the past few days suddenly seeming to seep out of his body.
“But then who-”
“Suyeon.”
“Attorney Choi?!” he exclaimed, lifting his head to look up at her and she nodded, sitting down beside him.
“When I went to the bathroom that day, I walked in on Suyeon hiding in there and she was very close to tears-”
“Wait, Attorney Choi was in my room? How-”
“She- uhm- she needed to dispose off that pregnancy test and she didn’t want to risk Minwoo-ssi finding it out. Also she didn’t know we were coming back to your place because I had told her we would probably stay in late to work on the review documents. Then I had to distract you long enough for her to slip back into Minwoo-ssi’s room that time. That's why I was in such a hurry to go home. And she told me to text her after I got out and I couldn’t risk you finding out that’s why I took a cab.”
“Woah hold on- Attorney Choi is the woman Minwoo has been going out with?”
“Yes.”
“Wait, so she is the one who is actually pregnant?”
“Yes,” Youngwoo stressed, an exasperated look on her face.
“And Minwoo- doesn't know?”
“Animida. She is- scared to tell him.”
Junho let out a sigh, falling back on the bed, smacking his hand against his forehead and dragging it down his face.
“Jagiya, do you know how scared I was?”
The giggle she let out at that had him huff, Youngwoo laying on her stomach beside him, resting her chin on her hands.
“Is that why you were acting so strange Junho-ssi? You thought I was pregnant?”
“You think its funny huh?” he mumbled, pulling her closer as her laughter increased in pitch, Junho’s lips pressing fondly against her forehead.
“You could have asked me Junho-ssi.”
“I told you I was scared! If I ended up asking I would have probably told you it would be a good idea to get married right then or something in the heat of the moment.”
“That doesnt sound like a bad idea, although Appa wouldn't have liked if you had married me without his permission. There’s no need to be scared anymore though since I am not pregnant. Are you feeling okay now?”
“Well- I mean yes I was caught off guard but you know love, it's not such a bad idea now that I think about it.”
“Huh?”
“What I mean to say is jagiya,” he turned to face her ,”I wouldn’t mind a mini us running around sometime in the future,” he whispered in a low voice, warm hand slipping under her shirt to rest on the soft skin of her stomach, her breath hitching at the words.
“I wouldn’t mind it too.”
“You wouldn't?”
“Ani. I would like to have children if it's with you Lee Junho-ssi. It would be nice. Although I am not sure how good of a mother I could be, I am sure you would be a great appa.”
“That’s good to know love. And I am sure you will be a really good mother, you just need to believe in yourself.”
She hummed in response, leaning up to kiss him softly and got up, pulling him up with her.
“Dinner,” she reminded, Junho nodding, hand closing around her wrist as he tugged her behind him, opening the door to her room only to stop in his tracks when he saw Youngwoo’s father standing at the bottom of the stairs, eyes narrowing when his gaze fell on Junho.
“Come on out, both of you,” Gwang Ho said, holding a wooden ladle, fingers drumming against the wall beside.
“Abeonim-”
“Get down here!”
Junho threw a look at Youngwoo, gulping harshly, throat suddenly dry, shifting closer when she tugged him towards her and leaned up on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear.
“Now would be a really good time to show me how you managed to get out of the house through my bedroom window that day.”