Boundless

제 22 장

⸻

Two Months Later

ATHENA'S POV

"Athena, it's me again..."

His voice clung to the air like incense—soft, aching, persistent.
"I'm healthy now. There's still pain, but the medicine helps. I just... I miss you. I love you. How's our baby? Is it a girl, or a boy? You must be blooming now... just three more months to go."

"We were supposed to do this together."

I turned off my phone.

That voicemail—like all the ones before it—played on loop in my head, every word a whisper that peeled back the fragile skin of my healing wounds. For two months, Jae had called. Day after day. Night after night. Each time, I silenced the world, but his voice still managed to seep through.

I stood from my desk, moved to the dresser, and dropped my phone into the drawer like a stone into water. The slam of wood echoed like a closing chapter.

"Thena, come down here and get you something to eat," my mother's voice floated up the stairs.

"I'm coming, Ma!" I called back, sliding into the familiar comfort of my worn slippers—the ones I brought from Seoul. I padded downstairs, greeted her at the landing, and she eyed me with the usual blend of worry and wonder.

"Why are you running down the stairs like you ain't got life growing inside you?" she scolded, hand on her hip.

I smiled, palm smoothing over the curve of my belly.
"I'm built from stone, Ma. He's fine—my son is just fine."

I had found out last week. A boy.
I had cried into my pillow until it was soaked.
Not from sadness, but from the ache of not being able to tell Jae.

"You always were tough," she laughed softly, shaking her head. "Same since you were a little girl. Too fast, too strong."

In the kitchen, my younger brother leaned against the counter with a bowl of cereal, looking at me like I'd just ruined his day.

"What?" I asked.

"Because of you, I'm stuck eating cereal. You can't just eat cereal like the rest of us?"

"I am eating," I said, gesturing toward the mountain of breakfast—eggs, bacon, pancakes, toast—an edible offering only my mother could summon with such love. "But I'm eating for two. And he's a boy, you know how boys are—big appetites."

"Bullshit," he muttered, mouth full of cereal. "That's some grade-A bullshit."

"Watch that mouth, boy!" came Mama's voice from the living room.

He rolled his eyes and grumbled. "Leave for three years, come back all knocked up talkin' 'bout kimchi and k-dramas..."

I laughed, taking a seat at the table.

"Jaden, Jay In, whatever his name is—he needs to take you back," my brother muttered. "You ain't even Black no more. You out here bowin' and shit."

"My ignorant little brother," I replied, dramatically placing a hand over my chest. "Twenty-three years old, can't keep a job, still living with Mama, and got the nerve to talk slick to his successful, pregnant, chocolate-skinned goddess of a sister."

I struck a pose, grinning wide.

"I'm a student," he said, trying to sound proud.

"You're a dumbass," I said sweetly.

He slammed his bowl down and stormed out, muttering something under his breath that I didn't care to catch.

⸻

JAE'S POV

The door flew open, the sound of my entrance startling Minhyuk as he turned, a spoon of ramen halfway to his mouth.

"You know knocking is—"

"Is it true?" I interrupted, breathless. "You found her?"

His eyes softened. He nodded, stood, and reached for an orange folder resting on his desk. He held it out with quiet ceremony.

"Minhyuk... thank you," I whispered, reverent.

I opened the folder with trembling fingers.
Atlanta, Georgia. Saint Charlotte Drive.

Her name on paper. Her location in ink. It was real.

Tears stung the corners of my eyes. Minhyuk patted my back, a rare gesture from someone who rarely spoke in full sentences.

"We found her, man. Honestly, I was starting to think she was just a fantasy you made up."

"She's the farthest thing from imaginary," I murmured. "She's... she's six months pregnant."

His eyes widened like moons. "Wha—congrats, man! Wait, what? Why didn't you tell me?"

I shrugged, gently folding the papers again. "We only became close a couple of months ago. I didn't want to spill my whole soul just yet."

"Fair," he said, then smirked. "Though you did tell me her name, her birthday, her star sign, her favorite coffee shop, her ethnicity, her blood type..."

"Your point?" I asked, tucking the folder under my arm.

He grinned. "You love her. Deep. I see it in your eyes."

I sat down, breath shaky.
"You should've seen her smile," I said, staring at nothing, yet seeing her vividly. "It was like sunrise wrapped in honey. Her eyes—they were glass windows to her soul. And her walk... God, her hips swayed like jazz. Every part of her... I loved with everything I had."

"Damn," Minhyuk whispered. "She sounds like art."

"Art doesn't even capture it," I said. "She's strength wrapped in softness. Fire made flesh."

He stood suddenly. "What are you waiting for, then? Pack your bags. Go to her. Whatever your father said to drive her away—undo it. She misses you, I'm sure of it."

I nodded slowly, a small smile pulling at my lips. "That's why I'm going to ask her to marry me."

Minhyuk practically exploded in applause. "Yes! Yes! That's what I'm talking about. Get your girl!"

But then he paused, more thoughtful.
"You're going to need something more than a ring. She's pregnant. That shoebox apartment won't do."

I smirked.

"I'm already ten steps ahead."

⸻