About You: Love & Sacrifice

Flashback 6

I found this yesterday at the very bottom of my Drive photo. Look, funny ya—my hand looks mini compared to your hand🤭

Btw, the ring is so pretty. Thanks though...^^^^^^^^^^^

If Younha had not leaned on the buffet, she might have fallen over her unborn child. His eyes flickered in disbelief with his chest going up and down to the rhythm of the breath that felt tight. Her tears dripped shamelessly, soaking her pretty cheeks that she had just polished with a plush brand powder birthday present from her husband yesterday.

Did Jihoon really duke it out all this time? Younha did not think. She thought the hardest thing was just waiting for Jihoon to say his feelings, but Younha was wrong. The love of the husband may not be for him. He thought Jihoon would remain the same in his stance when Younha chose to leave Jinan and take Jihoon's hand. She thought Jihoon really loved her, but this fact was enough to make Younha aware of the truth. The guess and worry that he thought was congenital pregnancy turned out to be completely wrong. Then why is this household still running as if there is nothing even involving children—one is even still in the womb.

Drrtt..... Drrtt....

The ringing of the tone of the call from his phone that was on top of the bed scattered the daydream. Younha wiped her tears and picked up the phone from the unknown number.

"Hello, honey?"

"Mas Jihoon?"

"Yes, it's me. Your voice is so bad, why?"

"I just woke up." Younha sat on the edge of the bed looking at the photo of the hand. "You want to ask me what phone you left behind?"

"Ah, yes. I was in a hurry." Jihoon chuckled. "There's a buffet if it's wrong."

"Yes, I've seen it." Younha smiled miris. "Do I need to take you to the office?"

"Eh, there's no need. I'll take it at noon. You're home, don't get tired and take care of our baby. Get plenty of rest, I can't wait to see our second babyboy. All right, I'm closing ya."

"Hm."

Call disconnected. Younha held back her cries with the hand that was still holding Jihoon's phone. The sweet way the man showed to respond made Younha even sicker. Jihoon treated him so sincerely that Younha did not know that for these three years he had been deceived by that sincerity.

Younha's hand came down to hold her big belly that was beginning to contract. She sobbed, trying to calm her little baby down so as not to know what Younha was feeling.

...*****...

At eleven o'clock in the evening, Younha was still faithfully sitting on her living room couch. His mind was like a broken tape cassette that was not saved. Upon seeing the hand-held photo, Younha's world felt lost, all the love he accumulated little by little for Jihoon crashing down in vain. Until he finished putting his first son to sleep, tears were relentlessly flooding his puffy eyes. Three hours he waited for Jihoon to come home, without a television or phone to entertain—just silence that accompanies his fragile heart.

The sound of the apartment pin sounded followed by the appearance of the figure of the man he was waiting for since earlier made Younha reflex step. Although Younha trudged along holding her big belly, she welcomed her husband as she always did.

"You must be tired of working late like this." Younha started to smile thinly.

"Oh, you haven't slept?" Jihoon said after taking off his work coat.

Younha approached Jihoon, removed his tie cover and threw it onto the sofa. Her twig hand draped down Jihoon's neck with a little tiptoe. Then Jihoon spontaneously stretched so as not to squeeze their baby.

With tears beginning to flow again, Younha kissed Jihoon's lips deep and channeled all his heart in silence. No passion tucked between them, Jihoon stared at Younha with puzzled twists as their faces began to drift apart.

"Why Younha-ya. Hm?" Jihoon's whisper rubbed Younha's hair backwards. "Why are you crying?"

"Heyjin?" Younha screeches. Seeing Jihoon's pupils moving randomly and trying to avoid stares with him seemed to justify Younha's guess.

"Am I not taking care of you? I'm lazy, boring and my serve is unsatisfactory?" Younha started with a random question. "Say anything less than me."

Jihoon's eyebrows wrinkled. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking what I want to talk about."

"Younha, what's your problem? Don't talk nonsense."

"My problem is you!" Sahut Younha was getting impatient. "I've been waiting for you to express love since the UK until now, I've always expressed my feelings and I'm always waiting for you. But you said that to another woman?" Younha laughed a little. "Do you know what it's like to be me? I tried my best, did everything in my power to make you love me and I think I won after Yeonjun and our next baby. But it turns out that my— lost. My struggle is meaningless because I lost to the one you love. Didn't we?"

Jihoon was completely silent.

"Since when have you had a relationship with Hyejin? Ever since I got pregnant with Seojun? Or before Yeonjun existed? Then why are you treating me like I'm your world that you care for and fear of getting hurt?" Younha's tears began to pour. "I—hampa when I found out you cheated."

Jihoon. "You don't understand."

Younha snorted in annoyance, his heart was completely arrogant to hear Jihoon's little talk just now. His eyes shook, at least an apology he had to hear even though it was fake.

"I must have made you depressed, huh? You must be hard because you're stuck with our lives." Younha nodded, tucked away a hint of lyrical laughter from her words.

"Younha, not so—"

"You should have said from the beginning, Jihoon-na." Lirih Younha continued. "Thus I can let you go a long time ago, you also do not need to secretly meet Hyejin and find excuses for me and the children. Since everything is clear, then—ayo is divorced."

Jihoon lowered his head, dodging the contact with Younha.

"I don't want you to continue lying to Yeonjun and Seojun who will be born as if you love her mother, it's too painful. Therefore, divorce when they do not know is the right thing. In the future once they grow up we can explain the truth to them about this fake relationship." Younha was still trying to talk even though her heart could no longer.

"After Seojun is fifteen months old, let's get legally divorced. At least he's learned to walk with his hand." Younha wiped her tears. "You—there's nothing you want to say?"

"All right."

"All right?" Younha laughed lightly. Then nodded in understanding while holding her stomach that began to cramp again, she cried since last—maybe the baby also understand what the mother feels.

Jihoon moves in to help Younha back into the room but her hands are blocked before touching her elbow.

"What's wrong, I can do it myself. I have to study independently, right from now on?"

Younha got up with great difficulty, stepping while holding onto the wall to support her trembling body and legs. As soon as he reached the room, his cries were unstoppable again. The thing he had never imagined from Jihoon, turned out to be his greatest fear.

Maybe God wants to make Younha aware, so he will just hang himself and hope only in Him. God loves Younha very much, his frail servant. God wants Younha to strengthen his heart, that Jihoon also does not belong to—Jihoon also belongs to his Lord.

Younha had to take off her great man despite being crushed.

...*****...