Our Little Miracle | nj

34 Weeks & Counting

After delegating opening tasks to his employees, Seokjin retreated into the kitchen to begin prepping some of the dishes that took a bit longer than what most customers would deem acceptable to wait for. He stopped for a drink of water first, as he was feeling a bit nauseous that morning, before pulling out some racks of pork ribs to begin preparing those, as dwaeji galbi was one of his more popular dishes. However, as soon as he began to remove the membrane from the first rack, the scent of the raw pork became too much for him, causing his stomach to lurch violently. He barely had time to drop the knife and ribs and run to the trash can in the corner of the kitchen before throwing up the toast and smoothie he'd forced himself to eat through his nausea.

"Boss, you okay?"

"Yes, Yeonjun, I'm fine." Seokjin said as he stood back up, back of his hand to his mouth just in case his stomach wasn't truly as settled as it was now feeling.

"You sure?" Yeonjun asked, obviously still concerned for the omega. "You don't look too good." The younger alpha had been the first employee Seokjin had hired years before, and also the longest working employee he currently had. Therefore, the male could tell when Seokjin was putting up a front or being sincere, so Seokjin didn't bother trying to convince him he was truly okay. "Go home and rest, Boss. I can handle the show for one day."

Seokjin nodded, planning on lingering for at least a little bit longer to make sure food preparations were well underway. Then he had to suddenly run to the bathroom mere seconds later to vomit again, which finally led to him going back home for the day.

***

Seokjin looked up from his Switch when he heard the front door open, Namjoon clumsy footsteps sounding through the entryway until the frazzled alpha finally appeared. "Why didn't you tell me you were sick? I found out from Yeonjun when I tried to go to the restaurant for lunch."

"It's morning sickness." Seokjin answered, although Namjoon still went through the motions of looking the omega over and pressing his hand to his forehead to check for a fever. "I'm sorry to tell you that we won't be having any pork in this house for the foreseeable future."

"Need me to get you anything?" Namjoon asked, gently resting his hand on Seokjin's stomach.

The omega shook his head. "I'm fine now. I think this one might be true morning sickness."

Namjoon hummed quietly as he pressed a kiss to Seokjin's forehead. "Next time, tell me when you're sick. Just to keep me sane."

"Fine, you big baby." Seokjin teased him before turning back to his game as the alpha headed to their kitchen to make a sandwich to eat on the drive back to work, as his lunch hour was already almost over by that point.

***

"God, I really want some chocolate." Seokjin blurted out as they waited for the ultrasound technician to come in so they could see their pup for the first time.

Namjoon looked at his mate in confusion. "You don't even like chocolate."

"And that's what makes it so frustrating!" Seokjin groaned. "I hate chocolate, but I would literally kill for some right now."

"How about we get hot cocoa after this?" Namjoon suggested.

Seokjin wrinkled his nose a bit. "Can we make it at home instead? That way I have more control over the actual amount of cocoa." Namjoon agreed, bringing Seokjin's hand to his lips to press a kiss to it just as the ultrasound technician finally arrived. The omega immediately laid back on the exam table, exposing his slightly bloated stomach so the beta could squeeze that freezing cold gel onto his skin. It took a moment, but soon enough there was an image of their tiny pup along with a strong heartbeat, a sound that immediately brought relief to the couple.

***

"I don't even know if I can drink this now." Seokjin admitted, as he was curled up under a blanket on their couch after his most recent bout of morning sickness. "My stomach is still churning."

"Five seconds ago, you were demanding your chocolate." Namjoon lovingly reminded him. "But I guess I could go pour it out-"

"Don't you dare!" Seokjin made grabby hands towards the alpha until he brought the mug over, the omega just inhaling the scent of the warm beverage for a few seconds as he realized his stomach was slowly beginning to settle. "Huh...interesting..." Namjoon hummed as he sat on the couch with him, moving the omega's legs so they were resting across his lap. "My nausea's starting to go away..." Seokjin took a tiny sip of his cocoa before shrugging. "Could just be a fluke though. Wouldn't place any bets on it just yet."

"I'm definitely gonna keep it in mind, though." Namjoon insisted.

And by keeping it in mind, he meant, as Seokjin learned the next morning, that he was going to make sure he had a cocoa ready for his mate to wake up to just in case. "That dork..." Seokjin chuckled under his breath as he settled against his pillows with his morning drink, closing his eyes as he let the aroma of the cocoa surround him. Soon enough, his stomach was settled enough to drink it, and that ended up being the first day that he didn't throw up until after lunch time when he'd attempted to grill some pork, only for the scent to send him straight to the bathroom.

***

Namjoon had only been in the bathroom for a couple of minutes, but he easily could have believed he'd entered a parallel universe as he returned to the living room and saw his mate sobbing so hard his nose was running. When he'd left, he'd been in one of the best moods, so the alpha was definitely confused. "Baby..." He asked cautiously as he returned to his spot on the couch next to Seokjin. "Is everything okay?"

"No!" Seokjin bawled. "There was a McDonald's commercial, and the chicken nuggets looked so good and now I want chicken nuggets but we don't have any!"

The alpha blinked, wanting so badly to laugh but knowing that would probably only make Seokjin cry more. "I'll go get you some chicken nuggets."

Seokjin turned to him with wide eyes. "Really?" Namjoon nodded, and Seokjin started crying harder. "I don't deserve you!" He wailed, leaning forward to bury his face in the alpha's shoulder. Namjoon stayed quiet, rubbing Seokjin's back comfortingly and pressing kisses to his cheek until he was calm until the omega's tears transformed into irritation as Namjoon hadn't left to get the chicken nuggets yet.

A/N: the next book in this series, Once a Safe Haven, Now the Deepest Heartache, is up now!