Chapter 6 - Grandma's house

True to his word, Minho had everything packed up for your trip as soon as you woke up the next morning.

"Morning, sunshine!" he welcomed you warmly as you made your way down the stairs into the small restaurant.

All the chairs were flipped and on top of the neatly cleaned tables, and Minho stood in the doorway with a small luggage and a bag in front of him, on the floor.

"I was just taking these to the car. I fixed you a plate in the kitchen, please eat before we leave, hm?" He smiled warmly.

"Thank you, Minho." You returned his smile. "Are those all our bags?"

"Yeah, I just packed some essentials. There's actually one more bag in the car with some warm clothes and some spare winter jackets, just in case a zipper breaks or something like that." He explained, his eyes rolling up, a gesture you noticed he always did whenever he was thinking deeply about something.

This told you that he must've gone through everything he packed in his head again before answering you.

"Okay, have you also eaten?"

"I did, so don't worry about me and go have some food." Minho urged you, and you finally gave in with a small nod and a smile and watched him exit the restaurant.

~

"Okay, there you go." Minho said as he helped you get into the car and buckled you in.

"So, where exactly are we going?" You asked curiously.

"To my grandma's house. She lives in a chalet in the mountains. It's a really beautiful place, and most importantly, quiet."

"To your... grandma?" You continued, unsure. "But what will she say... when she sees me?"

"She'll probably be happy that her favourite grandkid found someone and has a kid on the way." He chuckled nonchalantly. "And then she'll forget everything in a few minutes. She has dementia. However, for those few minutes she remembers, would you mind fooling her together? Otherwise, she might not get a chance to see this in her lifetime."

You smiled at him sweetly. "Of course. By the way, you said you're her fave grandkid, right? How many others does she have?"

"Just me." He chuckled.

"Not much competition, then." You chuckled as well, the car soon being engulfed with both of your laughter, a bit louder than Minho's playlist.

The ride was a few hours long, but Minho made sure you were comfortable every step of the way. You even made a few stops for a quick snack break and for stretching your legs and arms a bit, and you once again found yourself feeling way too grateful for the man you got to know so well in such a short amount of time.

The feeling in your chest was only growing stronger; that scary feeling that would creep in and whisper in your ear that he could, perhaps, be the man you wanted to spend your life with.

It wasn't fair to him for you to think like that, you knew, but you couldn't help wishing he were more. You started to love everything about him: the way his nose scrunched, how his eye corners wrinkled when we would smile, the way he made you breakfast every morning, the way he would bend down to help you put on your shoes, how he would scoop up the cats in his arms. He was annoyingly perfect no matter what he'd do, and the way he treated you... let's just say no one's ever taken such good care of you before, and you weren't used to it, and it made your heart skip every time.

Leaving him is going to hurt. You thought, but you realised you couldn't keep burdening him by taking advantage of his kindness and readiness to help. Even now, watching the wind caress his hair, you kept thinking that he had to close the restaurant and miss out on making a living just to take you out of the house, because you got scared of his ex-girlfriend shouting at you and coming to hit you.

Right, his ex-girlfriend. Thinking about last night, you were truly puzzled. How could that girl throw away her relationship with such a perfect man, you wondered?

"Minho, can I ask you something?" you were now back in the car, already deep in the mountain's forest, grandma's house just an hour or so away.

"Sure, go ahead."

"You said that the girl from last night was your girlfriend and that she left..."

"Mhm." He nodded. "What about it?"

"I keep thinking... why? She seemed pretty remorseful..."

He sighed.

"I'm sorry, you don't have to answer that. Sorry I asked." Your head dropped and you started fidgeting your fingers nervously, afraid that you'd upset him.

He seemed to notice, and he proved once again that your growing affection for him wasn't unfounded. He gently placed his hand on top of yours, stopping you from hurting your fingers.

"She got into this wonderful university in America. We were all really happy for her, we celebrated for days after she got her acceptance letter." He smiled bitterly. "And, of course, I was going to support her with everything I had. I'd just finished Uni myself and used to work for this big international company, I had the 9-5 life down to the notch" he chuckled.

"I imagine it'd fit you." You smiled. "Were you wearing a suit and briefcase like a model salary man?"

"Dal-Rae." He looked at you shortly and laughed, before his eyes darted back to the road. "Don't make fun of me."

"The restaurant fits you much better though."

"I also like it way more. My back was getting stiff in the office."

"I bet." You smiled sympathetically.

"I really needed one of those massages I'm giving your shoulders every other day."

"Oh, yeah, the massages! Those are the best." You chuckled. "With how good you are with your hands, maybe you are a masseur in an alternate universe."

"Yeah, maybe!" He chuckled.

"But damn, a 9 to 5 job when you like to wake up at 11AM?" You shook your head. "Anyways, sorry for interrupting you." You laughed briefly, the image of salary man Minho still in your head, as you urged him to keep going.

"Okay. Where were we?"

"She got accepted to a Uni..."

"Oh, right. So, as soon as she left, I promised her I would find a way to follow her. I was ready to uproot my life and find a job overseas, because Dal-Rae, I was so sure I was going to marry that girl."

His words stung, your heart suddenly growing heavy, not because you were jealous, but because you felt the pain in his voice. That prompted you to turn your hand around and capture his, holding tightly. He returned your hold and clasped your fingers together.

"I started job hunting. I asked at work, they had offices in the US and were willing to offer me a position there, providing that I passed the interview. But as time went by, I would find that Jess barely returned my calls. She stopped replying to my messages entirely after about 3 months of her being away, and the only info about her I found out was from Olivia. They were best friends, and apparently Jess didn't find it too hard to keep in touch with her."

"So... was that when you broke up with her?"

"God, I wish. But I stayed a doormat for much longer. I accepted the situation as it was, took her dumb excuses to heart and told her I'd wait no matter how much, but in reality, I was struggling and started to doubt everything. I ended up even losing my job because of a stupid mistake I would've never in a million years made if I'd paid attention to anything else around me. I was pathetic, really."

"Minho, you were never pathetic, please don't say that about yourself." Tears were prickling your eyes. "She didn't deserve you. She must've realised that too, since she came crawling back."

He chuckled. "You know what's funny? She was never that irrational before. I'm sorry she took it out on you." He looked at you and frowned a bit, his forehead forming firm lines in between his eyebrows.

"You don't have to apologise... it must've been pretty shocking, especially since she misunderstood seeing me..." You pointed towards your ever-growing belly and were surprised to see Minho letting go of your hand and cupping your belly gently, caressing it.

It was like the baby responded to his touch, because you quickly felt a powerful kick directly under his palm. This seemed to happen every time Minho would touch your bump.

"Ouch" you frowned.

"Baby, you're gonna hurt mommy if you keep that up." He whispered, continuing to massage the spot before returning the hand on the wheel.

"I can't believe she's going to be here soon." You whispered as well, making Minho raise a brow at you.

"She? I thought you said you didn't know?"

"I don't." You smiled. "But I just have a feeling that it's a she... I don't know why."

"A baby girl... that's sweet." He smiled gently. "What do you want to call her?"

"I don't know... Haven't thought much..."

"What about Amelia?" he suggested. "It's beautiful."

"Amelia... I love it." You looked down at your bump and felt tears pricking your eyes again. How you wished you could only have happy memories like this.

Should you tell Minho that you were preparing to leave? That you would no longer weigh down on him?

"Anyway," he started, "We're almost there."

You were glad he interrupted the moment, for you were not ready to face the harsh reality that was to come, and you were not ready to tell him anything.

~

Grandma's house was bigger than you expected, and, as Minho said, deep into the forest, beautiful mountains covered in snow surrounding it.

He fidgeted the keys in his hands and finally found the one he was looking for, unlocking the front door with ease.

"Grandma! It's Minho! I'm home! Oh, hello Mrs. Young. Long time no see!" He smiled politely as an older woman came to welcome you, taking Minho into her embrace.

"Minho, what an unexpected sight! Grandma will be very happy to see you! And who might this young lady be?" she smiled brightly, noticing you and your cute baby bump.

"This is Dal-Rae. Dal-Rae, this is Mrs. Young, she takes care of my grandma. She truly has superpowers!" He chuckled, making the lady blush.

"Oh, you're too sweet! I'm just doing the job you pay me to do!" she smiled, then turned her eyes on you. "You two look very good together! You found yourself a very beautiful girl, Minho. Grandma will be so proud of you. And a baby on the way? Congratulations! I bet you can't wait to meet the little bean!"

"Yeah, we really can't wait!" he smiled brightly and placed his hand on the small of your back, the proximity startling you a bit.

"Did you think of names already?"

"Oh, not really, we-"

"Amelia. Her name will be Amelia." You interrupted Minho and took the liberty to hug his side, smiling, trying to live the fantasy that you were indeed family for just a little while. After all, he's the one who started it, why not take advantage of it?

It wouldn't hurt anyone, right?...

"Oh my, Minho! It shows just how much you love your grandma, considering you want to call the baby after her. She will be so happy to hear it, I'm sure." The woman had tears in her eyes and came closer to the two of you again, taking both into her embrace.

"Now, come on, let's go visit her as well. I've already been away from her long enough." She wiped her tears from her cheeks and guided you to one of the rooms in the house, at the far end of the hallway.

"Ma'am, your grandkid is here to visit, and he has a special guest!"

"Hey grandma! How are you doing?" Minho spoke cheerfully and approached the lady that was rocking back and forth on a chair and crocheting something, crunching down in front of her. He received no response, the lady not seeming to be aware of anyone else's presence in the room.

Minho signalled you to come, so you followed his lead and came close to grandma.

"Hello. My name is Dal-Rae." you introduced yourself shily, not knowing what to expect.

To your surprise, however, she turned to you, as if she suddenly had a revelation.

"Baby." She smiled, pointing to your belly. "Baby." She repeated, seemingly happy.

"Yes, grandma, it's a baby. We're naming her after you."

"Hm?" She looked at Minho and then around her, confused about her surroundings. Then, she resumed rocking on the chair and busying her hands with the yarn.

"Sorry, Minho, she's been getting worse as of late..." Miss Young placed her hand on his shoulder, to which he replied with a simple sigh. "I can assure you she's glad you're here, but..."

"No, that's okay. I'm glad to see her still relatively healthy. We'll be staying until Monday, if you don't mind."

"How could I? This is your home, Minho! Please, let me know if I can do anything to help make your stay more pleasant."

"No worries, we can handle ourselves just fine." He got up and came to you, grabbing your hand and guiding you out of the room and down the long hallway.

"Are you okay...?" you asked as soon as Minho opened the door to one of the bedrooms at the other end of the hall. You couldn't be indifferent to the frown that made its way on his otherwise perfectly composed face.

"... It's just hard seeing her like that, you know?"

"Mhm. I know..."

"It hurts that she can't even remember me."

He took a few steps forward, his back now turned to you, but you heard the pain in his words, no matter how collected his voice sounded.

You weren't sure what to do – or rather, if what you were about to do was right – but without much thinking, your arms found their way around Minho's frame, meeting halfway in front of his abdomen, and you embraced him tightly, whispering softly:

"I'm sure it's hard."

You rested your head on his back, grateful that he didn't reject you.

"And I'm sure it hurts badly. But even if she doesn't always remember you, you're still her favourite."

You continued speaking gently, hearing a small sniffle come from him.

"It will be okay." You whispered.

"It won't... I don't think she has much left, Dal-Rae ..."

"Then, I'm glad we came. You got to see her again after all this time, so the trip was worth it, right?"

"What will I do once she...? I will be all alone..."

"You won't... look at you, you have so many friends... Jisung, Chris, Hyunjin... everyone cares about you so much... you will never be alone, Minho, there are so many people who love you and treasure you."

"You think so?"

"Mm. I know so. I saw it." You smiled genuinely. "I'm even jealous, I wish I had such real friends."

"Dal-Rae." he took your arms away gently and turned to face you. Traces of wet tears painted his now rosy cheeks, and you couldn't help placing your hands on them, wiping everything away. You wished things were this easy; that you could've wiped away all his pain with just your fingertips.

This gesture seemed to shock both of you, as you quickly retracted your hands and smiled briefly, looking at your feet on the ground and starting to feel stupid for harbouring so many feelings for him.

It wasn't right. You kept telling yourself that.

It wasn't.

But how could it be any other way, when he's been the centre of your universe ever since you stepped foot in his restaurant, ever since he selflessly offered you food and a place to sleep, ever since he treated you and the baby inside of you like his own family?

Fuck, how could it be any other way?

How couldn't you love him?

Love... yes. You finally gave it a name. You couldn't avoid it any longer. It was already real for far too long for you to try to keep ignoring it.

It was love. You loved him.

"Dal-Rae," he said once again, drawing your attention back to him.

"Hm?" you asked, unsure.

"Thank you." He grabbed your hands and held them firmly. "Thank you for saying that. Are you also one of those people?"

He was the one to grab your face this time, wiping tears away from your cheeks. You didn't even realise you've been crying. The only thing you knew was that it hurt seeing Minho like that.

"Of course I am, Minho. How could I not be? To me, you are..." everything – you wanted to say, but the possibility of rejection frightened you too much. It once again felt too unfair to dump your feelings on him, to force them down his throat, you considered. – "... a very important part of my life. I appreciate everything you've done for me and I... I don't know what I would've done without you."

It was true, you didn't know. You also didn't know what you were going to do without him in the future, when you would leave – in just a few weeks, before the birth.

You didn't know, nor did you want to think about it, for it made your heart break harder than it ever did until now, and God knows you had your fair share of pain and suffering.

"You are very dear to me, too." He replied, moving his hands from your cheeks to your hands, squeezing them. "And I hope you know that I will always be a real friend to you. I will be there for you when you need me. Always."

That was it. Hearing him say that out loud managed to finally tear down your walls and make you break down in front of him. If up until now, you've been crying silently for his pain, his words made you sob loudly for your own.

You wanted to tell him everything, to confess your love for him, but you knew you couldn't. Instead, you just sobbed.

Sobbed, sobbed, sobbed, unable to stop the tears from falling.

"I- I'm sorry, I'm just so... touched. I can't thank you enough, and..."

"Shhh, that's okay." This time, he was the one to embrace you tightly, caressing your head, trying to get you to calm down.

He placed one hand on your cheek again and lifted your head. The proximity of your faces made your heart beat so quickly, so irregularly, you were afraid it would jump out of your chest.

Glancing deeply into his brown eyes, you felt safe and content that he was at least your friend. Having him as a friend was better than not having him at all.

His eyes were also fixated on yours. What he was thinking – you wouldn't know. But you made a terrible mistake, your gaze dropping to his lips that were so close to your own, it made you dizzy. You were quick to realise your mistake, bringing your eyes back to his, but it was far too late, for the damage was already done - you became flustered, and he noticed.

And then, just as you were thinking of what to say to get out of his proximity, to get some room to breathe before your cheeks turned even redder than they definitely were – he pressed his lips firmly on yours.

God only knows how much you wished for his kiss, so, as unfairly as you felt it was towards him, you allowed yourself to close your eyes and kiss him back.

Just this time, you thought, and I will let him go.

~

(A/N) OMG

WE GOT A KISS!!!

But with Dal-Rae planning to leave, I'm quite anxious about the next chapters...

What do you think? Should she tell Minho about her plans?

Love,

Storm