92
“It’s the 6th week.”
It was that afternoon when they visited the Omega specialty obstetrics clinic.
Yeon Ji-ho, who came to the hospital with Seon-rok, felt intimidated when he noticed that most of the Omegas, except for himself, had come with their husbands. Just as his shoulders were about to slump, if Seon-rok hadn’t made a fuss while wrapping his arms around Ji-ho’s shoulders, he might have gone straight back home.
“6 weeks? Doctor, how’s the baby? Is the baby okay?”
“Here, let’s look at the ultrasound.”
Seon-rok asked various questions on behalf of Ji-ho, who knew nothing. Ji-ho silently stared at the monitor screen that the doctor was pointing to.
In the picture that was mostly black, gray, and white, a particularly noticeable white dot stood out. The doctor pointed to that spot and began to speak.
“It looks fine on the screen for now. However, since it’s early in the pregnancy, you should be careful.”
“Yes, yes. We should be careful.”
“But…”
The doctor, who had been speaking gently, paused for a moment. When Ji-ho looked at the doctor, he raised one eyebrow and asked Ji-ho, not Seon-rok.
“You’re a recessive Omega, aren’t you?”
“Ah, yes.”
“As you probably already know, recessive Omegas, especially male Omegas, always face risks from pregnancy to childbirth.”
Ji-ho’s heart fluttered at the doctor’s low voice. As he was fidgeting with his fingers, waiting for the doctor’s explanation, unable to find words to respond, the doctor turned his gaze to Seon-rok and said,
“The Alpha partner’s pheromones are especially important for recessive Omegas. …The person who came with you isn’t the partner Alpha, is he?”
The doctor examining Ji-ho was an Alpha, and of course, he had recognized that Seon-rok was an Omega. When Seon-rok nodded with a heavy expression, the doctor nodded as if he had expected it.
“Next time you come, you must come with your partner Alpha. That way, we can prepare for what’s to come.”
“…What if he can’t come?”
“If he can’t come, well…”
The doctor, who had been hesitating to answer, clicked his mouse a few more times. But finally, with a heavy sigh, he looked straight at Ji-ho.
“Typically, the birth rate for recessive Omegas who don’t receive Alpha pheromones drops to around 50% or lower. And even after birth, we can’t guarantee the health of the child.”
“…”
“The reason for this is that Alpha pheromones have a massive impact on the Omega’s body during pregnancy. It means that not only the child but more importantly, you, the patient, could be at risk.”
The more the doctor spoke, the more Ji-ho felt like everything was going dark. As Ji-ho’s fingertips began to tremble, Seon-rok, who was next to him, saw this and reached out under the desk to hold his hand.
“I heard you’ve already started experiencing morning sickness. Is it severe?”
“I, I haven’t been having morning sickness for long…”
“He has trouble finishing a bowl of rice. If there’s any food with a strong smell, he can’t even eat a third of it.”
Seon-rok spoke up in place of Ji-ho, who was trying to give a vague answer out of fear of the doctor’s words. He had been quite worried about Ji-ho’s eating habits that he had observed yesterday and today. When Seon-rok spoke up, the doctor sighed.
“Without receiving Alpha pheromones, the morning sickness will get worse from now on. Headaches and other minor symptoms will also accompany it. For now, I’ll prescribe some medication for the morning sickness.”
A heavy atmosphere lingered in the examination room. Ji-ho, afraid that his rapidly beating heart might burst out of his mouth, had to tightly grip Seon-rok’s hand, which was still holding his.
The consultation ended after hearing some additional minor explanations from the doctor. As Ji-ho and Seon-rok were about to stand up, the doctor suddenly called out to Ji-ho.
“Patient.”
“Yes?”
“If your partner Alpha can’t come with you next time… You should consider hospitalization. Keep that in mind.”
It was only the 6th week of pregnancy. There were still more than 8 months left until the due date. Yet they were already suggesting hospitalization.
Ji-ho bowed his head and barely managed to calm his trembling breath as he walked out of the examination room. Seon-rok completed the payment on behalf of Ji-ho, who was struggling even to breathe. Ji-ho, holding the prescription, and Seon-rok remained silent even as they walked out through the hospital’s automatic doors.
Finally, when they got into the elevator and it became quiet around them, Seon-rok spoke first.
“The doctor here isn’t great, right? He speaks too stiffly. Let’s go to a different hospital next time, Ji-ho.”
Hearing those words, Ji-ho felt like he might burst into tears. With the tip of his nose turning red, Ji-ho nodded with difficulty.
“Ah, I think Omega doctors are better than Alpha ones for obstetrics. It’s more comfortable when they’re the same type, you know.”
“…That’s right.”
In fact, both Seon-rok and Ji-ho knew well that it wasn’t the doctor’s fault. The doctor had merely told the reality of how dangerous it was for a male Omega who couldn’t receive Alpha pheromones to give birth, something Ji-ho needed to know.
But if they didn’t comfort themselves like this, it would be difficult to even stand. Suddenly, as the elevator shook slightly, Ji-ho clutched his chest. It seemed he had developed elevator sickness, something he had never experienced before.
Seeing Ji-ho like this, Seon-rok went so far as to link arms with him and stuck close. Seon-rok spoke in a deliberately bright and energetic voice.
“Ji-ho, don’t worry. Who’s my husband? It’s Jang Soo-cheol, who even turned down the future hospital director position my father offered. And if worst comes to worst, I’ll contact my father and ask him to connect us with a skilled doctor, okay?”
Seon-rok reached out and gently patted away the cold sweat that had formed on Ji-ho’s forehead. With Ji-ho’s face seeming to grow thinner with each passing day, Seon-rok was also deeply worried.
While they were receiving the medication at the pharmacy on the first floor of the hospital, Ji-ho sat on a gray seat, staring blankly ahead. Perhaps because it was just after lunchtime, it was particularly crowded, but the sound of people talking didn’t reach his ears at all.
“Hospitalization…”
Hospitalization, huh.
In fact, Ji-ho knew what the true meaning of the doctor’s roundabout words was. Seon-rok, who was listening beside him, probably easily figured it out too.
If there would be no partner Alpha in the future, it might be better to terminate the pregnancy.
It was a natural suggestion given that not only the child’s but also the patient’s life could be at risk. However, the idea that “he could die if something went wrong” still didn’t sink in.
Ji-ho took out the ultrasound photo he had received from Seon-rok earlier and put in his pocket. Placing the photo on his palm, Ji-ho gently stroked it with his thumb.
“…Set would love the baby.”
He had lived a lonely life all along, and it was easy to imagine how much someone like that would love his own child. Apophis was like that too, wasn’t he? Saying that Set would be overjoyed when he heard this news.
As he imagined Set’s expression upon hearing the news later, Ji-ho steeled his resolve. This was no time to be weak-hearted. Whether he had to be hospitalized or risk his own life…
He had to give birth to this child.
After receiving the prescription, Ji-ho and Seon-rok left the city in the car. Since they had borrowed Seon-rok’s car, Ji-ho was first dropped off at Seon-rok’s house.
“Ji-ho, are you going straight home? Stay for dinner before you go.”
“It’s okay, uncle. I’ve been away from home for a while, and I have things to do…”
“You can call someone for most things. I know a place that specializes in that, want me to give you their contact?”
Seon-rok stood close to Ji-ho as he was leaving through the gate, saying he would at least drive him home. Knowing the feelings with which Seon-rok was looking at him, Ji-ho didn’t refuse the offer this time and went out together.
As the two were passing the entrance of the village, they saw people gathered on the wooden platform in front of the village’s only supermarket.
Then one of them spotted Ji-ho and waved.
“Student Ji-ho!”
“Oh my, isn’t that Ji-ho?”
“Ji-ho? Where? Oh, you must be tired.”
Unable to ignore them as they all greeted him, Ji-ho slowly approached. The people gathered there looked at Ji-ho with twinkling eyes and said,
“Ji-ho, I heard you’re pregnant?”
“A child having a child. Yes.”
It seemed that yesterday’s rumor had already spread throughout the village. In a rural village where children were precious, such news tended to spread particularly quickly.
Just as Ji-ho was about to answer with an awkward smile, one of the men sitting on the platform spoke up with a meaningful smile.
“The baby’s father is quite handsome, isn’t he?”
“…Pardon?”
“Hm? Ji-ho’s baby’s father. He’s a foreigner, right?”
Have they… seen Set? Such a question passed through his mind. Even if Set had stayed here with him, the chances of them not having seen him often outside were higher.
“That’s right, that’s right. Maybe because he’s a foreigner, he’s so tall. And his hair is bright yellow!”
Ji-ho’s mouth opened slightly. He thought he must have misheard.
“What was his name again… Hadd? Hadd?”
“No, no, Hadad. Ji-ho, you must be happy? The baby’s father was in a frenzy worrying about you.”
There was no time to deny it. The people who had already concluded that Hadad was the father of the child were busy chattering among themselves. Just as Ji-ho was about to speak up, feeling overwhelmed,
“So this is where everyone was?”
A gentle tone. A slightly amused inflection. Even a kind voice.
Someone wrapped their arm around Ji-ho’s shoulders. Startled by the sudden skinship, Ji-ho turned his head to see golden hair that seemed to hold the sun itself filling his vision.
“Ji-ho, at a time like this, you shouldn’t be walking around carelessly…”
Huh?
