As my wife’s pregnancy was quickly approaching its end, we decided to visit my family after quite a while, of course, bringing Joo-ha along.
Back in the day, visiting the house would have seemed like an impossible task, but now it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump away, so I didn’t feel too overwhelmed even with my wife’s belly puffed up like a balloon.
Of course, that’s only my wife’s perspective—my gut was telling me it would be better to just pop in after the baby was born… but my wife had no idea how long her recovery would take, and if we didn’t go now, who knows when we could visit again. So she insisted that we make the trip.
Naturally, I had no chance of winning this argument.
“Mom, I’m sorry we haven’t visited often.”
“Oh my, don’t worry. My dear daughter-in-law, I was quite worried when I heard you were coming with that belly of yours.”
“Ha ha, it’s not that far, really. Once the baby is born, who knows when we’ll be able to come again, so we came to say hello. Please don’t worry too much.”
Just like always, my mother was easy to convince, and we entered the house.
By the way, our new family home, like the previous one, was a standalone house. This time, my sister and I put our heads together to find a decent place.
My wife teased that if she had known in advance, she could have found a place right next to ours, which made her a bit upset.
“Joo-ha!”
“Auntie!”
While my mother and wife were catching up cheerfully, on the other side, a touching reunion between aunt and nephew was taking place.
Now that Joo-ha was able to navigate a few stairs on her own, she waddled over to my sister with determination.
Her waddle was as cute as can be, honestly.
“Aw, let me hold my niece!”
“Auntie!”
“Did you miss your aunt that much?”
“Uweu.”
“Yeah, I missed you so much too, my Joo-ha.”
I’m not so sure about that…
No matter how you look at it, Joo-ha didn’t seem to agree, yet my sister nodded fervently, hugging Joo-ha as if she were her own while swaying her back and forth.
Joo-ha seemed to be thoroughly enjoying it, bursting into giggles.
It looked like she was having a good time.
“You came early, didn’t you?”
As I quietly unpacked, my father, who must have been in another room, came over and tapped my shoulder.
“Yes, Dad. My wife wanted to prepare lunch and suggested we leave early.”
“Haha, we should be the ones hosting lunch! By the way, your mom bought some crab marinated in soy sauce that your dear wife likes!”
“Oh, really?”
My wife does love her crab. To be honest, she’s not very picky with food, but crab is definitely her favorite.
I’m not kidding when I say there’s always at least one type of crab dish stored in our fridge, be it soy-marinated or spicy-marinated.
But now that complicates things for my wife. She seemed preoccupied with what to serve the two of them while driving, and I even caught a glimpse of her searching on her phone.
Well, dinner can still be served later. We’re planning to stay overnight, so it shouldn’t matter too much.
“How many weeks are left now?”
“About two weeks until the due date, I suppose. Unless it comes out suddenly like last time.”
“This time, I need to make sure to lessen the burden on my mother… I’m worried.”
“Me too.”
That was one of the reasons I was feeling hesitant to come to my family home. Last time we visited the in-laws, Joo-ha suddenly decided to make her grand entrance, causing quite a commotion.
So I was thinking it’d be good to wait it out during this precarious time, but our dear doctor said otherwise, so there wasn’t much I could do.
“Are you planning to check into the hospital beforehand this time?”
“Yeah, I’m feeling uneasy after what happened last time, so I plan to get admitted early to prepare for the birth. Apparently, a lot of people do that.”
“That makes sense. Good idea.”
With a satisfied expression, my father followed my mother into the kitchen.
“By the way, is the due date really that close? Is it okay to visit like this?”
My sister, sitting with Joo-ha on her lap, was playing with her arms and asked me. She seemed quite surprised by our visit.
“My wife wanted to see everyone before giving birth. She thought it’d be nice to show Joo-ha, especially since you’re here too.”
“Our sister-in-law thinks too deeply for her own good. You should just come when it’s convenient.”
“What can I say?”
When my sister and I exchanged glances, both exasperated, my wife awkwardly averted her eyes, probably realizing she was being stubborn.
But it’s not that the stubbornness comes from a bad place. I think my parents and sister were happy about it. It just seemed to make things a bit awkward for my wife, who didn’t want to burden anyone.
“By the way, sister-in-law, how’s your appetite? Mom was preparing a lot tonight because she heard you were coming, so are you up for it?”
Now that our conversation was wrapped up, my sister turned to my wife for the next topic.
Given the delicious smells wafting from the kitchen, it was clear that Mom had gotten up super early to cook.
“Definitely! To be honest, it’s embarrassing, but my appetite has increased a lot recently.”
“Your appetite is increasing? That’s great news! Embarrassed about what?”
My sister dismissed my wife’s feelings with gusto, insisting she should eat even more.
Honestly, I agreed with her. Considering she had to eat for three, my wife didn’t seem to be eating that much. It was barely 1.2 times the average woman’s meal.
“You should eat plenty of tangerines and yuzu, too. Now that you’re a mom, you need to eat well for the sake of the kids.”
“That’s true.”
Luckily, hearing that made my wife clench her fist in determination like she got it. She looked like she could take on a boulder.
For reference, tangerines and yuzu are the names we’ve given to our twins. My wife ate a ton of tangerines and yuzu tea during her pregnancy, and it stuck.
So, after they’re born, we’re thinking of naming them Gang Gyuri and Gang Yoo-chan. After all, we already know one’s a girl and the other’s a boy.
“Kids, it’s time to eat!”
“Yes!”
Before we knew it, time flew, and Mom’s voice called us for dinner, prompting us to head to the kitchen.
There truly was a feast laid out that could break even the strongest support stand.
*
That night, I stepped out for a moment with my wife to the park nearby. It was a rare night walk prompted by my wife’s desire to get some fresh air despite her discomfort.
“…Honey.”
“Yes?”
“When I go into the hospital, won’t it be long until I get to see our babies?”
“You’ll see them soon.”
Sitting on a bench like a high school couple merely holding hands and gazing at the moon, we continued our conversation.
“Will Joo-ha get along well with her siblings?”
“Of course! She’s such a sweet girl.”
I could easily answer that without worry, but it seemed my wife wasn’t so sure. She fidgeted nervously, shaking her legs until she finally shook her head.
“I honestly don’t know. There’s that saying, ‘the terrible five-year-old,’ you know? When she gets older, Joo-ha might turn into a little troublemaker.”
“When that time comes, we just have to do our job right. And as parents, we should believe in our kids.”
“That’s unfair! If you say it like that, I feel like the bad mom.”
“That wasn’t my intention…”
I shot a wry smile at my pouting wife, and she quickly turned it around with a smile saying, “I’m just kidding.” I knew she wouldn’t sulk over something like this.
“I do believe in her, though. I’m sure Joo-ha will be a good big sister.”
“She will be, especially with So-yul as her example.”
“Yeah, it would be great if she could learn from So-yul.”
“If they meet often, she might just pick it up.”
“Hehe, that could be.”
After that, we imagined various scenarios of life after the twins were born.
Life until now had been pretty happy, but I anticipated that life with the two kids would be even richer, though no doubt tougher.
“Honey.”
“Yes?”
“When the kids are grown up, let’s go on a trip together. What do you think?”
“That sounds great. Is there anywhere you want to go?”
Truth be told, since having Joo-ha, we hadn’t really taken any distant trips, only close ones.
Thinking it was a good idea, I casually asked, and my wife tightened her grip on my hand and looked at me with a smile.
“Anywhere is fine, as long as I’m with you and the kids.”
“……”
Normally, such a response would come off as just polite or a corny line, but perhaps the gravity of her words differs based on who says them.
In that moment, I could believe she truly meant it, and I realized I felt the same way.
No matter where I went with the people I love most, it would surely be enjoyable.
“…I feel the same way.”
“We’re on the same page, then.”
“Indeed.”
So, I tightened my grip on my wife’s hand and once again gazed at the moon. Even though it was only half-full, it seemed particularly bright tonight.
And that moon would eventually become a full moon, illuminating the night sky.
Finally, we would become the parents of three children.
Gyuri and Yoo-chan would reveal themselves to the world.
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