Only You

A Tale of Two Godfathers

"Honey, what are we doing here?"

Her husband had insisted on bringing her out for a special surprise, in the name of celebrating getting over the first trimester of the pregnancy. She had fallen for it - even going so far as to wearing the blindfold he provided and getting excited at the mention of being able to have her favourite fried chicken again.

As the blindfold was taken off, she noted that this wasn't her favourite chicken place. In fact, as she started mentally preparing her list of "Things We Should Discuss When We Get Back" - which included "crossing over the two realms while being four months pregnant" and "the effects of time travel on the baby", she realised it was a place she was intimately familiar with.

The wood panelled walls still held the patina of age, with various medals and framed certificates still plastered on its surface. A faint aroma of sweat still lingered in the air despite the presence of a lemon-scented air freshener beside the standing fan at the back of the studio. With the exception of a stack of newly bought padded mats in the corner, everything was as it had been a few months ago, when she had visited just after the wedding.

This better be good.

"Just wait, my heart. You'll love it." His gleeful tone suggested otherwise. Whenever there was a surprise and the King was involved, it was almost always guaranteed to be something that she would later regret agreeing to be a part of.

"You know I can't do Taekwondo in my condition!" She put her hand over her softly rounded abdomen. Covered by an oversized grey sweater and a long coat, most people couldn't tell that she was expecting - which was fine by her.

Even though they had initially agreed to announce the pregnancy once she had passed the first trimester, Tae-Eul had wanted to delay it for a little longer. As much as possible, she wanted to keep the announcement until she was at least 5 months along. The first trimester had passed without much difficulty, but she figured it would be safer to keep the news under wraps for as long as possible.

Court Lady Noh's cautionary words, though well-meant, had struck something close to home for her. With both Tae-Eul and Lee Gon having lost one or both of their parents at such an early age, it was something that they wanted to prevent happening to their future son or daughter. She fully intended for both of them to be present at every milestone of their child's life.

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"I've finished sweeping the place, Your Highness. It's all clear." The black-clad figure stood still in the middle of the studio, waiting for further instructions.

A sheepish green went over Lee Gon's face as his wife finally recognized the "guest" in the room. Tae-Eul cast a suspicious glance at him,"Why are you here? What did you do?!"

The bodyguard's whole demeanour immediately went from relaxed to stiff. "You mean, I'm not worthy to be the Royal Heir's godfather?"

GODFATHER?

He had clearly taken offense at the implication that he was not fit for the role. Though he was assigned to be the King's personal bodyguard and Captain to the Royal Guards, he was also the King's closest friend, confidante and protector; so close that they were more like brothers.

"No it's not that." Tae-Eul rushed to assure Jo-Yeong while internally vowing that she wouldn't try to kill anyone, no matter what she thought about her husband's plan.