NOVEL WEB Chapter 174
Sure, here’s the translation:
“Yeah, I couldn’t just give up everything.
Besides, I’m getting used to all this in many ways.
Haven’t I already raised your name? Adding two more here… well, it won’t be easy, but I don’t think it’s impossible either.
Ha-yoon and Ji-hye thought the same way.
It’s not that the three of us ‘love each other rationally.’
However, we all wanted a beautiful family. And for that, there had to be absolute trust in each other and certainty in our love.
Well, even if it’s not so conditional.
Yeah, when it comes to loving each other and having kids, what reason is there to weigh conditions or justifications?
*
When I first got pregnant, I was scared.
It felt like my body was no longer my own. Seeing my belly swell seemed like a hint that the upcoming pain would only get worse.
To be honest, while experiencing labor pains, I even wondered if I could go through pregnancy again.
But looking at the baby’s face, all those thoughts flew away.
Watching a child that resembles me, the person I love, and the person who loves me, was a reward that could erase all prior pain.
By the time of my second pregnancy, it was a little better. Instead, I happily rubbed my belly, watching the child grow.
The baby moving inside felt so lovely.
And for the third one…
“…”
“…Can you hear it?”
Jua whispered softly to me.
“Um…”
With my ear on Jua’s swollen belly and my eyes closed, I shook my head with a wry smile.
Well, you can’t really hear the baby’s heartbeat just like that. That’s a sound that can barely be captured by an ultrasound machine.
I had already seen what the baby looked like. The images from the ultrasound weren’t very clear and frankly looked a bit wrinkly, but still, it was my baby and was so beautiful.
I couldn’t hear anything, but—
“Ah.”
I felt the slight push of a face and chuckled.
“Looks like I was invading your privacy too much.”
Feeling the baby push my face away with tiny feet from inside the belly, I smiled and pulled my face away from Jua’s belly.
The baby probably wasn’t looking or feeling me, but that fact was just so endearing. Soon enough, I would be able to actually touch those little feet that once pushed me away.
“…I can’t believe it.”
Jua, who had been waiting the longest, said while rubbing her belly.
“…”
I quietly stroked her belly.
Should I make a joke or something? No, I decided to just say nothing.
I simply thought of how grateful I was.
That I, who had been so twisted alone in this world, could love someone this much was solely because there were people who loved me just as much.
I could only look forward to the day when our children would come to us, patiently awaiting it together.
*
When I first gave birth, I didn’t fully feel it, but during the last birth and this one, I understood something.
Not that there weren’t any contractions, it really hurt like hell, but the time and intensity of those contractions were a bit less than before.
Among us couples, I was the only one who had a first childbirth. The other wives each had only one child.
Maybe that’s why I finished giving birth much earlier than Jua this time.
“Ji-eun.”
Ha-yoon tightly grasped my hand.
Once again, the baby in my arms looked so small and fragile. It couldn’t even open its eyes properly, and its skin looked wrinkly, as if it had been in water for too long.
But already, I felt that this baby was so beautiful.
After just a bit of time, the skin would feel smooth. When the baby first rolls over and takes its first steps, even though I’d seen it many times before, I would still shed tears.
It would probably be the same when I first hear the word ‘Mom’.
In that sense, there would be no reason for us to fight about which name the baby would call first. We were all ‘Mom’ after all.
Ji-a.
That was the name this baby would have.
The name of the child Jua birthed was Joo-eun.
Thus, we couple had six daughters.
*
They say having many children makes the house chaotic.
To be honest, I don’t know what would have happened if it weren’t for us four. Thankfully, we could delegate roles; if that wasn’t the case, I would’ve lost my mind long ago.
Mornings at our house are certainly busy.
“Ji-yun, Eun-ha!”
I caught the two kids trying to leave through the front door and handed them my phone.
“Oh, I almost forgot!”
“Thanks, Mom!”
“Don’t run too much. You’ll fall again.”
“Okay! Love you, Mom!”
“I love you too!”
Who do they take after being able to say things like that?
At least, they don’t take after me. They probably resemble Ha-yoon or learned from the words and actions we usually exhibit.
Well, at least we taught them that much right.
…Or maybe, am I doing my best to raise the kids by taking myself as a lesson?
Well, it’s a heartwarming story either way.
“I’ll drop Eun-hye and Ye-ji off at kindergarten and come back.”
“I’ll be back soon.”
After the first and second kids left, it was time for the third and fourth to go.
Jua and Ji-hye swiftly grabbed the two still half-asleep kids and hurried out the front door. Both had messy hair and were still just in their sportswear.
Honestly, I thought that sight was cute too. Hmm, maybe the honeymoon isn’t really over yet? If we’re going with the typical narrative, it should’ve ended already.
Anyway, after that bit of chaos passed, the house got a little quieter.
Though Ji-a and Joo-eun were still too young to go to kindergarten, they wouldn’t cause significant issues for now.
No matter how young they are, with four of us taking care of them, there’d be no problem.
I quickly turned around and headed to the kitchen where Ha-yoon was.
Ha-yoon was cleaning up the breakfast mayhem sprawled across the table. As soon as I joined her at the table, Ha-yoon smiled slightly.
“The kids left well?”
“Yeah, they did.”
I pushed my bangs back and picked up the empty dishes to move them with Ha-yoon.
After lightly rinsing the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher, we both let out a long sigh and finally sat down.
After a moment, Jua and Ji-hye came back in through the front door.
They also sat down on the sofa, letting out a long sigh.
“I think we need to move to a larger place.”
“Definitely. It’s better for the kids to have their own rooms when they grow up.”
Jua replied matter-of-factly to Ji-hye’s comment.
For now, we all share the same room. Honestly, it is a bit cramped. It was designed with the assumption that only two people would use it.
Well, the truth is, we don’t spend much time in our room, so it hasn’t been too uncomfortable.
But there’s no way we can keep letting the kids share and be together for long.
“That… we’ll have to think about it. If there’s a vacant piece of land, I’d just build a standalone house.”
“Should we look into it?”
Ha-yoon asked.
“Let’s think about it a bit.”
If I start thinking about it right now, my head might hurt.
For now… I wanted to relax a little.
It seemed the other three felt the same, as we slumped in our chairs together for a little while. Luckily, Ji-a and Joo-eun didn’t wake up and start fussing.
It was a bit tiring, but it wasn’t entirely unpleasant.
I think I won’t become a perfect mother, but at least Ji-yun and Eun-ha haven’t caused any major issues so far. It means that our parenting isn’t completely off course.
So, this is also a satisfying peace. It’s that slight feeling of detachment felt after exercising… hmm, is that a strange metaphor?
“…Should we snack?”
It suddenly came to my mind, and I said that.
My dear wives turned their heads towards me and chuckled.
At this time, my stomach has started to grumble a bit. Honestly, eating something right after waking up doesn’t really go down well, and there are often times when something happens that stops us from eating properly.
I usually eat just a little and fill up the remaining space in my stomach when I have some free time.
That’s what I’ve been doing.
I tore off some bread I had bought earlier and put it in the toaster.
“…”
Once again, we were all silent.
But that silence wasn’t a heavy, cumbersome kind.
It was a time where the ease of familiarity rendered words unnecessary.
I couldn’t help but smile, lifting the corners of my mouth slightly.
Yeah.
Maybe this was the life I had longed for.
A life filled with people I love, who can fill the emptiness I first felt when I came into this world.
Snap.
The golden-brown toast popped up from the toaster.
I took out those two pieces of bread, putting in the next one.
I can’t just eat by myself.
As much as I love, we must share it together.
That’s why we got married.”