OMS 51
by Cherry[Early pregnancy may be difficult to detect with disposable test kits; accurate results can be obtained through blood tests at hospitals. Symptoms include vomiting, lethargy, drowsiness, and body aches. Excessive exercise or sex should be avoided as they can harm the fetus.]
Park Dong-sik read and reread the pregnancy and childbirth section of [Omega and Alpha]. Besides vomiting, he didn’t have any other suspicious symptoms. He’d suffered from severe gastritis before, could it be recurring? Still, it was strange that he only reacted to certain foods. Troubled, he made another cup of ramen and smelled it, but nausea surged up his throat again and he had to throw it away.
Feeling anxious, Park Dong-sik finally called Driver Oh and went to the nearest pharmacy. Using a headache as an excuse, he entered wearing a mask to avoid recognition.
Just then, children appeared, clutching their mothers’ hands, one coughing, another with a lollipop, another crying after getting a shot. Seeing these various children made Park Dong-sik’s thoughts more complicated.
“Can I help you?”
At the pharmacist’s question, Park Dong-sik nervously glanced around.
“That…please…”
“Pardon?”
“…Omega…”
“Ah! Omega-3? Which kind are you looking for? Plant-based ones are popular these days. Do you have a preferred brand?”
Park Dong-sik glared daggers at the pharmacist and struggled to speak.
“Omega…pregnancy test…”
The pharmacist brightened. “Ah! Pregnancy test! One moment please!”
Why don’t you just announce it over a loudspeaker, you bastard? This is why I hate people who only study. No social awareness at all. The pharmacist brought the test, and Park Dong-sik paid in cash, quickly hiding it before returning to the car.
Back home, he locked himself in the upstairs bathroom and nervously unwrapped the test. Reading the instructions about implantation and whatnot, he couldn’t understand a single thing.
“So…two red lines means I’m screwed…?”
Praying desperately for it to be negative, Park Dong-sik stood before the toilet.
“Fuck. I’m so nervous I can’t even pee.”
After taking the test, he checked it with a tense expression on his face, one red line. One means negative. Park Dong-sik’s lips curved into a broad smile. Of course. Pregnancy my ass. Relieved, he was about to throw it away when he thought better of it and looked for tissue paper.
Wait. Something’s strange. A faint red line was appearing in the left panel that wasn’t there before. Was he seeing things? He checked from different angles, held it up to the light, looked down at it, tried everything. A very faint but solid red line had appeared in the middle.
Park Dong-sik hurriedly checked the instructions. Two lines mean positive…His heart sank to the pit of his stomach at the text saying lines might be faint in early pregnancy. He couldn’t take his eyes off the test. His mind went blank.
His thoughts were in chaos. He collapsed weakly onto the sofa, feeling feverish. Body aches were among the symptoms in the book…Park Dong-sik lay on the sofa in despair. He needed to think of a solution, but his mind was totally empty at the moment.
Time passed, and Park Dong-sik suddenly sat up from his corpse-like state. Right. The book said intense exercise or sex was dangerous in early pregnancy. Neither guy was home for sex, but what about intense exercise? After thinking, he went outside wearing only workout clothes.
The bitter wind slapped his face and his lips trembled from the cold. Park Dong-sik took a deep breath and started running full speed around the large garden. If he ran until exhaustion, it would strain his body and maybe cause a natural miscarriage.
But he’d forgotten one thing: he wasn’t Park Park Dong-sik now, but Lee Hee-soo. Before completing one lap, his legs gave out, and dizziness made him stumble and collapse.
“Fuck this useless body.”
As he complained, his phone rang. Chairman Kim’s urgent voice came through.
[Mr. Hee-soo! What are you doing in the garden?]
Park Dong-sik looked back. Chairman Kim was watching from the second floor. He wanted to run to her and confess everything. But their situations were too different now. Park Dong-sik stood up, brushing dried grass off his pants.
“Just exercising.”
[In this cold? What if you catch a cold?]
Park Dong-sik sighed. Should he tell Kim Yoon-ah the truth? But even if he did, there wasn’t an immediate solution. He needed to go to the hospital for confirmation, but she couldn’t accompany him in her current situation.
By now, there was one person who came to mind.
Someone he really didn’t want to meet, but who might understand this situation.
“Honey, I’ll call you later.”
Heading to the guest house, Park Dong-sik called Lee Hee-soo’s mother.
[What a surprise. You’re calling me.]
“Are you free today? I want to go somewhere with you.”
[Where? Shopping?]
“I’ll tell you when we meet. It’s not appropriate for phone conversations.”
[Oh right, did you have a good time with Tae-han that day?]
“…”
[The more I see him, the more I like Tae-han. That Kim Jun-han fellow is desperate to divorce you anyway. These days, you don’t have to be officially married. If Tae-han likes you, just live together. He’s joined the company too, surely the Chairman won’t ignore his younger son?]
Park Dong-sik ignored his words and set a meeting time before hanging up. He called Driver Oh, who kept checking Park Dong-sik’s complexion in the rearview mirror throughout the drive. From the pharmacy visit this morning to this outing now, thinking Kim Jun-han might receive reports about all this, Park Dong-sik put on his best acting performance.
“Driver Oh, I’m meeting my mother for shopping and dinner today. Don’t wait for me. Please take care of your other duties. I’ll call you when I’m done.”
“Yes, understood.”
Leaving the car, Park Dong-sik went straight into the department store. Not seeing his mother, he looked around until he spotted him waving from inside the luxury boutique. As soon as he entered, Lee Hee-soo’s mother held up a fancy shirt against him, beaming.
“You’re early. Look, Hee-soo. Which is better between these two? Or should I get both?”
Park Dong-sik chose several shirts, including the ones in his hands and handed the card to the clerk. After paying, he was heading out with the shopping bags when Lee Hee-soo’s mother grabbed his arm.
“Why are you in such a hurry? I’m not done shopping yet.”
“I need you to come somewhere with me.”
“Where?”
“Hospital.”
“Why the hospital?”
Park Dong-sik bit his bottom lip hard. He truly hated that this person was the only one he could turn to, but what choice did he have? Legally, he was Lee Hee-soo’s mother, so even if people noticed or the press caught wind, it wouldn’t seem strange.
“I’ll explain on the way. Did you bring your car?”
“Tell me exactly what’s going on. Then I’ll go.”
“It’s awkward to talk about here.”
His mother scoffed.
“What? Are you pregnant or something?”
When Park Dong-sik’s expression hardened, his mother’s eyes widened. “What…? Y-You’re serious?” Not wanting to continue this conversation in a crowded place, he hurriedly led him to where the car was parked. As soon as they got in, he asked again.
“Are you sure? Really pregnant? That’s impossible…”
“Why impossible?”
“You don’t remember? When you were twenty, after that accident and injury, the hospital said you’d likely be infertile. Your father paid the doctor so much money to keep quiet about it.”
This was news to him. He hoped he was telling the truth.
“Does Kim Jun-han…know?”
“I suppose he must. Someone like him might even be happy about it. He gets what he wants and has a clean reason to end things.”
“…”
“But is it CEO Kim’s?”
When he shrugged his shoulders, his mother’s mouth fell open.
“Don’t tell me it’s Kim Tae-han?”
When he shook his head, his face hardened.
“That conman from before?”
He told him that the conman must have frozen to death in some deep mountain valley in Gangwon-do. Or died from a fall. Unable to reveal the truth, he kept his mouth shut, but his mother slapped his shoulder and smiled broadly.
“Anyway, this is great, Hee-soo!”
“What’s great about it?”
“Just insist it’s Kim Tae-han’s child. I can forge any documents you need.”
Park Dong-sik laughed in disbelief.
“Damn. I’m going crazy.”
“Watch your language. I’m hurt. This is all for your sake, you know. When you make that face, you make me look like such a bad person.”
It’s probably for his own sake, not Hee-soo’s. With a child on the way, they couldn’t easily throw him out. But that was just because Lee Hee-soo’s mother didn’t know Kim Jun-han and Kim Tae-han. If either one were confirmed as the father, would the other just stand by quietly?