Fate || PART 2 of 'Good Luck, Babe!' (Bbangsaz)

21. Jangmi

5 months later...

M I N J I

I stared at the news in disbelief, blinking as I tried to process if it was even real. The pain in my hand? Yeah, I think I forgot about that.

The headline sounded almost unreal.

Jeon Guwon, youngest heir of Jeon Group, arrested for alleged sexual assault and drug use. The police are still investigating the sexual assault allegations, so the length of his sentence is undetermined.

An arm draped roughly over my shoulder, squeezing me too tight for comfort.

I shoved Haerin away, too shocked to process anything properly.

"Your girlfriend just got out of labor, and you're glued to your phone? Go take care of her, you dumbass," Haerin hissed, peeking over my shoulder. "Wait, what? What are you—oh my god."

I nodded slowly. "I always knew something was off about him. I never said anything out of respect for Hanni, but... now it makes sense how she even got pregnant in the first place. She hated him, there's no way it was consensual. I'm going to fucking kill him."

"You can kill her ex-husband later," Haerin said, pulling me into a chair. "What's important right now is Hanni."

They're moving Hanni and our newborn to a room. I didn't get to see Jangmi properly—everything was a blur. Too much noise, too much pain. I don't know how Hanni did it. I thought I might faint just thinking about what she was going through. Her squeezing my hand brutally helped me stay upright, but that was nothing compared to her pain.

"You're right. I should focus on Hanni and Jangmi," I mumbled, switching off my phone and looking for a sign of a nurse or anyone who could tell me where Hanni and Jangmi were.

"Are you with Miss Pham?" A nurse approached just then, and I nodded vigorously, completely forgetting about Guwon as my excitement to see Hanni and our daughter took over.

"Follow me," she said with a smile, motioning for me to come. I glanced back at Haerin.

"Danielle's in the cafeteria. I'll get her and bring her along," Haerin said, patting my back before walking off.

I cleared my throat, barely able to contain my excitement as I followed the nurse at a near sprint. After what felt like hours but were really only minutes, we stopped in front of a private room. The nurse twisted the handle and opened the door.

The evening light streamed through the windows, brightening the wood-paneled hospital room. I stepped inside as the nurse excused herself, closing the door behind me.

Taking a deep breath, I slowly approached the bed where Hanni lay, cradling our newborn baby girl in her arms. She was too distracted to notice me at first.

When Hanni finally looked up, she smiled, and our eyes locked. She didn’t say anything, but I smiled back. My heart felt like it could burst. I got to experience a moment so surreal with the woman I loved.

"She’s sleeping," Hanni whispered. I grabbed a chair from the side and placed it near the bed, carefully sitting down to avoid making any noise.

The moment I saw her, every worry vanished. Our daughter was so pure, so soft, so fragile. I swore to myself right then that I would protect my small family with everything I had. Experiencing this at such a young age felt overwhelming, but I couldn’t ask for anything more. This was all I needed in life.

I blinked back tears of happiness, my gaze moving to Hanni’s serene expression as she watched Jangmi sleep soundly.

"It’s your turn to hold her," Hanni finally said after a few minutes of peaceful silence.

I looked up, caught off guard. Hanni chuckled.

"What? You've watched a thousand baby-holding tutorials for this moment. Come on," she teased.

"Yeah, you're right. I can do this," I said, shaking my head. I was suddenly nervous as I gently took Jangmi from Hanni’s arms. She was so light, so innocent.

I let the tears stream down my face as I held her, overwhelmed. Hanni shifted slightly, reaching for her bag on the side table. I didn’t pay much attention until I heard the click of a camera.

I looked up to see Hanni holding the Polaroid camera I'd brought back from my parents' house. She shook the photo, grinning.

"The first one for the baby album," Hanni said proudly.

"She’s so small. I can’t—oh my god," I said, sniffling like a child denied candy. I didn’t care how ridiculous I looked.

A few knocks at the door made me glance up. Haerin poked her head in, and I nodded, signaling her to come in.

Haerin entered with her hands full of gift bags, while Danielle followed behind with bags of food.

Danielle nearly squealed, but Haerin quickly covered her mouth.

"The baby’s sleeping," Haerin reminded her.

The two set their bags on the table and walked over. Danielle hugged Hanni first, asking her the typical questions about how giving birth felt. Hanni, of course, replied with, "It was terrible. Never again."

Haerin shook her head at her wife, then turned to me. Her eyes softened when she noticed Jangmi asleep in my arms. "Oh my god, she’s adorable."

"Like me? I know," I replied, smirking.

"Come on, she doesn’t even have your genes—"

"Haerin," Danielle cut in, clearing her throat loudly.

"Sorry," Haerin muttered, looking guilty. I shrugged it off—I didn’t care.

"But can I hold her?" Haerin asked.

"No way. You can’t be trusted with my precious daughter. Do you even know how to hold a newborn?" I shot back.

Haerin rolled her eyes as Hanni and Danielle continued their conversation. Then Danielle spoke up.

"Can I hold her instead?" she asked, her eyes hopeful. I sighed.

"Fine, but only for five minutes," I relented.

"Oh wow, I see how it is," Haerin said, shaking her head in disbelief as Danielle carefully took Jangmi from my arms.

"Hey, baby, it's your favorite aunt," Danielle cooed.

"We all know I’m going to be her favorite," Haerin mumbled, though no one in the room, including me, agreed.

I dragged my chair closer to Hanni, noticing how her eyes were starting to flutter closed. I took her hand, gently caressing it before kissing the top of her knuckles.

"I’ll get you some food, sweetheart. You can rest after eating," I whispered against her skin.