Itazura Na Kiss: Love in Tokyo 3 - Hello, Baby!

08| chapter 8

KOTOKO'S POV

Araki-sensei looked at me, with one perfectly manicured eyebrow raised high. I swallowed.

"Heh heh... I guess it's true..." I said, smiling nervously.

'Irie-kun!' I screamed in my head. I was furious. Why did he have to make things so awkward for me?!

"Don't worry, ne, Irie-san," she said, flashing me a genuine smile. Unexpectedly, she laughed a bit, and it sounded like an angel. "It won't be as hard as it sounds. Trust me, with some help from your husband for managing your meals I'm confident that you won't have any trouble staying within the limit!"

"Hai..." I responded, giving her a big nod. 'Irie-kun, managing my meals...?' I thought. 'Does that mean he'll give me a break, and cook for his beloved pregnant wife?'

"Anyway with that aside, I need to tell you two about the haaah hehh nih wohh kahh tehh, sahnnn shihh..."

"Here, Kotoko." Irie-kun said, placing a plate in front of me with a rolled egg omelet, octopus balls, steamed taro and a grilled fish in a sauce so fancy that it looked straight out of an expensive restaurant. "I hope you like it. This took me two hours to prepare." He flashed a dreamy smile at me as I looked up at him.

"Irie-kun..." I said, smiling back up at him. Kyaaaa! He looked so cool in his apron!

"Go on and try it, Kotoko." He said, pulling up a chair and sitting right next to me. He smiled again, and placed a hand lovingly on my shoulder. "I made sure that it's packed with vitamins, now that you're eating for two." As he stared into my eyes, I felt my knees would give out and I'd drown in their inky darkness.

"But Irie-kun, you really didn't have to do all this..." I said, staring bashfully down at the delicious arrangement as I placed my finger on my lips. I could feel my mouth salivating already.

"I wanted to, for my amazing pregnant wife..." He said, putting his arm around my back. "Now try it."

"Unless..." he said, leaning in a bit closer, "...you aren't hungry."

He placed his hand on the side of my face, pulling me in closer and closer...

"Oi, Kotoko." My ears perked up at the sound of Irie-kun's voice.

"Ah." I said, and my eyes popped open. Araki-sensei and Irie-kun were both staring at me, waiting. "Mmm?" I hummed.

"Taku..." Irie-kun said under his breath, annoyed. He gave me a stare so sharp that it pierced me like a knife. "Were you even listening?"

I pursed my lips and looked to nurse Araki-sensei, back to Irie-kun, who was still staring at me, and then back to Araki-sensei. She sighed and gave me a polite smile, that wasn't quite as warm but still kind enough.

"As I was saying, you have to be extremely careful from now on," she said, nodding along with her words to emphasize the importance. "As you probably know, pregnancy is counted in lunar months here in Japan, each month being 4 weeks." She stated, looking at Irie-kun and then back to me. "Currently, as your test revealed, you are about 7 and a half weeks pregnant, which places you at the 2 month mark. The first trimester, which is 4 months, is the most dangerous period." She said, a grave expression crossing her pretty features. She looked at Irie-kun with a serious look in her eye, then again, back to me. "The risk of having a miscarriage is higher during the first trimester than any other point in the pregnancy. Once you've hit the 5 month mark, you can start to breathe easy as it's much less likely for you to miscarry at that point. But for now, I desperately advise you to take good care of yourself. Be careful around stairs, try not to fall, and just take it easy." She said.