"It'll be a little cold at first, but it'll warm up," Dr. Seojin said before squirting a dollop of lubricating jelly.
Taeyong cringed, flinching again when she pressed the transducer against him, pushing around.
"You okay?" Daehyun asked, brushing his thumb over Taeyong's hand.
"Yeah, just a bit uncomfortable," he whispered, shifting around. Taeyong brushed his fingers against Daehyun's cheek, admiring his strong jaw before tapping his chin.
Daehyun cracked a smile and brought Taeyong's wrist to his nose, taking a breath of his scent for the millionth time today. He couldn't get enough of the sweeter scent, even coffee, a natural scent neutralizer couldn't completely cover his thicker scent.
Flinching when Dr. Seojin pressed down on his lower abdomen, Taeyong turned back to the screen, Daehyun lacing their fingers together.
"There it is," she said and in the middle of the grainy grey, she circled the dark mass covering most of the screen. "That is your uterus. And this"—she pointed to a white blob in the corner of the black area—"is the fetus."
Taeyong sucked in his breath, staring at the pea-sized spot; their baby, bobbing gently with each of his heartbeats. Taeyong pressed his lips together and squeezed Daehyun's hand.
"That's our baby."
He nodded slowly, his eyes stuck to the screen, glassy and shining. "Yeah," he breathed out.
"Should I print out a picture for the both of you?"
Daehyun cleared his throat and Taeyong smiled, nodding. "Yes, please."
With a click, the picture froze and the pressure of the transducer lifted. Taeyong took a deep breath as he wiped the jelly off and Daehyun helped him sit up.
"You can pick up the picture at the reception," Dr. Seojin said. "Is there anything else you'd like to discuss? How are you managing stress, Taeyong?"
Taeyong slipped his trench coat on and chuckled. "Just fine, doctor," he said and patted Daehyun's chest. "Daehyun and the family are very supportive."
Daehyun hummed and placed his arm around Taeyong's waist. "We're trying our best. But, doctor. Tell Taeyong he needs to focus more on himself."
Dr. Seojin raised an eyebrow and Taeyong pouted. "I'm trying to be more selfish. I'll slow down as the baby demands more."
"That's true. But listen to your mate. Now is not the time to care what someone else had for lunch. It should be the other way around."
He chuckled politely. "I understand."
Taeyong and Daehyun bowed their heads as they stepped out of the room before walking down the hall, hand-in-hand.
"I don't care what you guys eat for lunch," Taeyong started. "Right?"
Daehyun glanced at him, humming. "Maybe not exactly that, but you are a bit nosy."
Taeyong gasped. "What? Am not. How am I nosy?"
Daehyun squeezed his hand. "We'll talk about it later."
They rounded the corner to the reception table, where a nurse was closing up a small, square envelope before looking up. "Park Taeyong?"
"Yup, that's me."
She nodded and glanced at both of them, her smile widening, lighting up her otherwise sullen face. "Congratulations," she said, handing over the envelope with two hands.
Taeyong thanked her and turned back to Daehyun. "Let's go."
Daehyun nodded and led him to the door, his eyes still watching the other, more heavily pregnant people in the waiting room. As they stepped out, they slipped on their sunglasses and Taeyong noticed Daehyun's smug smirk.
"What're you thinking?"
Daehyun hummed. "Just thinking what you'll look like in a couple of months."
"Oh no," Taeyong groaned. "I'll be so round and bloated."
It was inevitable that he'd put on weight, but so far, pregnancy wasn't so bad. Except for nausea and sensitivity.
"You'll be beautiful, regardless," Daehyun said as he unlocked his car. He stopped and kissed Taeyong's hand. "You're beautiful no matter what."
Giggling, Taeyong covered his mouth and ducked his head. "Oh, stop," he whined, wriggling away. Daehyun pulled him into a quick kiss before letting him go, Taeyong stifling his giddy laughter until he sat in the car.
As Daehyun got in and the engine roared to life, Taeyong pulled out the sonogram and held it up, along with his phone. He lined it up with his camera and took a picture, returning it to the envelope. He sent out the picture to the family group chat.
Immediately, messages poured in.
Taeyong laughed at the multiple messages Chanri sent. "Your mother is losing it," Taeyong said, smiling at his parent's more subtle approach.
Daehyun fondly shook his head as he turned onto the freeway. "I expect nothing less."
"Agreed." Taeyong giggled. He switched tabs and stared at Jaejin's contact and their texts. The last several had been from him, all without an answer. He shook his head and set his phone down.
Jaejin deflected every time he asked him about that night. Couples did fight, even Daehyun and he did, but that? The yelling and shoving? Taeyong shook his head. Now wasn't the time to overthink. Plus, Jaejin would open up when he was ready. He couldn't spend his time moping around waiting for him to respond.
Staring out the window, the Han river glittered under the clear sky, lined with budding pink trees. A picturesque image of pink and blue. Alpha and omega.
"Daehyun," Taeyong piped up. "How happy are you?"
Daehyun raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean? Of course, I'm happy."
"Even if this baby is an omega?"
"Even if our baby is an omega."
Taeyong paused. "Even if they're a beta?"
Daehyun breathed out a chuckle. "Yes," he said as he took Taeyong's hand and kissed his knuckles, his eyes still fixed on the road. "Even if by some slim chance our baby's a beta, I will still be the happiest man in the world."
"We don't know how slim it is," Taeyong muttered, the corners of his lips twitching up as Daehyun side-eyed him.
He leaned back in his seat, holding their laced hands in his lap, mapping out Daehyun's veins with his thumb. How lucky was he? His life was perfect. A perfect career, perfect family, perfect husband. Everyone deserved this level of happiness, yet somehow, they were the exception.
Taeyong lifted their hands and kissed Daehyun's fingers, a smile sweeping across his face. "You'll make an excellent dad."
Daehyun chuckled, tracing his thumb against Taeyong's cheek. "It's because of you three that I got my practice."
"Are you including me in that too?" Taeyong pursed his lips. "I hardly count. I'm talking about Seunghyeon and Myungsuk only."
"True, they were very young when we first met," he hummed before smirking at glancing over. "But you were a chatty teenager. Keeping you entertained was the biggest hassle."
"Hassle?" Taeyong gasped. Jutting out his bottom lip as Daehyun laughed, a wholehearted laugh that filled his heart.
Taeyong freed his hand and playfully smacked his shoulder. "Well, you were just my cool, handsome hyung. Of course, I wanted to monopolize your time."
"Well, you caught me now," Daehyun said, reclaiming Taeyong's hand. "And now all my time belongs to you."
Taeyong's chest swelled up and he pressed his face against his shoulder, taking in his musk, tingles fluttering up to his nape. Taeyong certainly didn't think he'd marry Daehyun at 14 years old. But their relationship had changed several times since then. Years of growing, learning, depending on each other blossomed into an iron-like love.
Most couples didn't build that unbreakable foundation. Even more don't consider their spouse a part of every corner of their life. But they did. Daehyun changed his whole life for him and Taeyong grew up with Daehyun in his heart. They carved out their lives with each other at the center. No stone unturned and no bridge uncrossed.
He bit back a grin as Daehyun snuck a kiss on his head and Taeyong took another deep breath of his mate's scent.
Oh, how lucky he was.