To Fall In Love Again [JEONGKYU FF]

Chapter 62

Three weeks.

It had been three weeks since they wheeled Junkyu into surgery. Three weeks since the triplets drew their first breath. And yet Junkyu hadn't opened his eyes—not once.

That night remained fresh in JeongWoo's memory. He could still see Dr. Yoshi's tired but relieved face as the surgical team emerged from the operating room, could still hear the words that should have brought nothing but joy: Despite the unexpected complications, the surgery went well. The knife missed all critical organs. The pups are healthy.

The triplets had been small—expected, given their early arrival—but their lungs were strong, their hearts steady. After ten days in the NICU, they'd grown with almost supernatural speed, reaching sizes that rivaled full-term newborns. Dr. Yoshi attributed it to JeongWoo's high-level alpha genetics, but JeongWoo barely registered the explanation. All his focus remained on the figure lying motionless in the hospital bed.

The doctors had been confident. According to how well the surgery went, he should wake up within hours. But hours had stretched into days, days into weeks, and still Junkyu slept.

It honestly confused Dr. Yoshi and Dr. Jaehyuk. Medically, Junkyu was perfect—organs functioning normally, no need for life support, even producing breastmilk for the pups. It was as if his body continued living while his consciousness simply... refused to return.

"It's like he's choosing to stay asleep," Dr. Yoshi had said during one of their consultations "It's rare for omega who just gave birth. Their instinct usually tells them to hold and protect their pups, regardless their psychological condition."

The words had hit JeongWoo. He knew exactly what this was. He'd seen it before—months ago, when Junkyu had retreated so deeply into sleep that JeongWoo had nearly lost him to his own dreams. But this time, there had been no warning, no chance to pull him back from the edge.

This time, Junkyu had fled somewhere JeongWoo couldn't follow.

JeongWoo had been tirelessly attending to Junkyu and the pups. He pumped Junkyu's breastmilk regularly as the doctor advised him and fed it to the triplets. And when Dr. Yoshi gave him the go-ahead for bonding sessions, the triplets began drinking milk directly from Junkyu.

JeongWoo would settle behind Junkyu on the hospital bed, skin to skin, supporting his mate's limp form against his chest. Hyo Jun would carefully place one of the pups at Junkyu's chest while JeongWoo held them both, creating a circle of warmth and protection. As each pup nursed, JeongWoo would release calming pheromones and nip on his mark on Junkyu's neck. The alpha would also tell stories about the pups to Junkyu, as if introducing their children one by one each time they had their meal and bonding time.

Junkyu had given birth to two daughters and one son. From the names Junkyu and JeongWoo had prepared together, JeongWoo had named their firstborn daughter Wooyeon—inheriting JeongWoo's warm skin tone but Junkyu's delicate features. Junhee, their second daughter, was her sister's mirror image. And Haru, their son, had claimed JeongWoo's strong jawline while keeping his mother's porcelain complexion. JeongWoo told Junkyu everything about the pups, all with the hope that Junkyu would wake up to see the children he had cherished so much.

"Wooyeon has your stubborn streak," JeongWoo murmured during one afternoon feeding, his voice roughened by weeks of one-sided conversations. His arm cradled both Junkyu and their eldest as she nursed contentedly. "She refuses to sleep unless she's touching you. Dr. Yoshi says it's unusual for such a young pup to show such strong bonding preferences, but I think she recognizes her mommy."

Hyo Jun sat nearby, gently rocking Junhee who had just finished her own feeding. The older omega's eyes were constantly red-rimmed these days, torn between joy at his grandchildren and grief over his son's condition.