8 Years [ENGV]

#35

HAEIN

Jisoo's smiles sometimes turned into laughter as she drove - something I hadn't realized could be so sexy. Haeji was in the back seat, distractedly playing something on her tablet, unaware of her mother's teasing laughter, amused by my nervousness.

"You look cute when you're nervous." She said, laughing again. "No need to be nervous, love. My parents don't bite." I took a deep breath. I felt like a young man about to ask for his beloved's hand in marriage - rubbing my hands on my jeans and exhaling dramatically. "If it helps; my dad likes to golf too. You can talk about that."

"Yeah, we can talk about that." I repeated, exhaling again, looking around the car for something to distract myself. I turned around. "Haeji." She looked up at me and blinked slowly - she's so beautiful. "Are you excited to have dinner with your grandparents?" She nodded with a smile.

"My aunties and cousins will be there too." She answered happily, though her smile faded into a confused wrinkle on her forehead and a curious look. "Daddy, why doesn't uncle Haejun have any kids?" She asked, tilting her head to the side.

"He just hasn't met the right woman yet." I replied, adjusting myself in the seat. Jisoo slowed the car as the light turned yellow, then red.

"What do you mean?" I didn't know how to explain to her why my brother didn't have children - it was, in fact, something I didn't know how to put into words that her uncle was with a different woman every week.

"To have a child, you need to marry someone you love. Your uncle hasn't found the right woman to marry yet," I said after a few seconds of thought.

"You and mommy aren't married." She pointed out. Jisoo and I looked at each other quickly.

"She got you there." Jisoo commented, laughing as she restarted the car.

"Daddy, you said you were going to marry mommy, and you still haven't." She said it like I had promised a wedding years ago and hadn't followed throughout of sheer laziness. Jisoo giggled, probably realizing I was running out of answers for our curious daughter.

"Haeji, we already explained to you that when I was pregnant, things were complicated. Your dad and I loved each other a lot, and that's why you were born, we couldn't wait until marriage." She said, giving me a mischievous look - unnoticed by Haeji. "After you were born and we were tricked, we separated and now we're back together. Our priority was you, and we weren't thinking about marriage."

"What about the baby?"

"We weren't thinking about a baby either," She answered softly. "We were thinking only and exclusively about getting you back. The baby was..." She cleared her throat, unsure of how to say it. "A little accident." She said, almost as a question.

"But aren't you going to get married?"

"We are," I sighed in relief, hearing Jisoo confirm it. "But for now, we need to focus on the baby first. I don't want to get married pregnant, my belly will be too big for it." I smiled, imagining her with a bigger belly and wearing a wedding dress - it was definitely something I would love to see.

"You'd look beautiful." I said, not realizing I was looking at her with dreamy eyes.

"Mommy would look beautiful either way, even with a big belly." Haeji said, making us laugh.

"But this bride wants to wait." Jisoo said, turning the steering wheel to the right.

We arrived at Jisoo's parents' house, a large and luxurious home - of course, I expected nothing less, the Kim family was wealthy and successful.