six;

       Another week passed, time now seeming to fly by her. Her bump was growing with each passing day, concerning Mingi and Hongjoong. She seemed fine but that extra weight was already starting to take a toll on her body, especially her back. She's now reached the point where lying anywhere but her sides while she slept became uncomfortable.        Her cravings changed to any meats. But she specifically asked for deer. She stopped sleeping alone four days ago, only because they would keep her from tossing and turning in her slumber.        Eunha didn't have morning sickness anymore, all she could think about was food. She was eating almost three times more than her usual diet. But the vampires happily fed her anything she wanted. Even if that meant leaving the area to get it.        Jongho sat across from her while he watched her devour the plate of food. He had only just sat down when she began and that was minutes ago. She wiped her mouth with the napkin and let out a belch that put the two vampires to shame.        "That was amazing, thank you Seonghwa." The eldest vampire smiled at her and took the plate in front of her to discard.        "Anything for you, doll." Jongho couldn't help but chuckle at his elder before standing up and stepping beside of her to hold out his hand.        "Care you accompany me, angel?" Eunha smiled at his request and accepted it by grabbing his hand, allowing him to help her stand. She followed him outside the main doors and around the side of the castle.        "Where are we going?" She asked curiously.        "You'll see." Jongho responded, finally stopping where the two of them had trained to help his control. He spun around and grabbed her other hand.        "Why are we here?" She looked around then back at him, noticing his smile.        "Why do you think we are here?" He retorted back, making her deadpan.         "You know I have a lot of trust in you.. but I don't think this is the time to help with your human side." She looked down at her stomach and back at him.        Jongho laughed at her words. "No, that's not why we are here." She gave him a confused expression so he continued. "This is where we truly got to bond. And this is where I realized I liked your presence being here. And that I never wanted to let you go."       Eunha was surprised at his sudden confession, but she couldn't hold back the smile.        "I pushed down my human side because all I've ever known is to be a vampire, even when I was human for those short years. But I've been able to unlock that side of me, break down my walls. I struggled the moment I met you. I've never wanted to seem weak or feel weak. But I did it for you. And it's the best decision I've ever made." Jongho suddenly kneeled down in front of her, still holding her hands but he kissed her fingers. "Will you marry me, Bin Eunha?"        She rolled her eyes but nodded profusely. "You don't even have to ask. You have my yes."        Jongho's smile only grew bigger, standing up and wrapping his arms around her, lifting her off the ground to twirl her. Eunha squealed from the sudden movement and held onto his shoulders. "You make me so happy. So.. so happy." He held onto her tightly, finally letting her feet place back on the ground.         "I love you, Jongho." Their eyes met and he leaned forward to capture her lips with his. He pulled her closer by her waist until their chests were pressed together while his other hand placed on the back of her head.        She deepened the kiss and tightened her grip around his neck. He pulled away before he got too excited. "I love you, too."

       "Checkmate." Jongho groaned and hid his face in his hands.        "How? How are you so good at this?" She giggled at him and began to clear the pieces off the board. "No. We're playing again. I'm not leaving this seat until I beat you."         Eunha stopped and shrugged, now placing the white pieces back on her side while Jongho adjusted the black ones. "Okay, but you'll be sitting here all night." "Why not just ask her to teach you? I'm sure she wouldn't mind to have some actual competition." The youngest huffed at Mingi's words, the vampire sitting behind Eunha as he watched her demolish Jongho at chess.        "No. I will do it on my own accord. I don't need help." He refused dramatically, getting a laugh from the human. "Your loss." Jongho continued to lose against her those next few games, to the point the vampire was about to rip his hair from the scalp. "Aish! I give up!" Yunho had joined the seat next to Mingi two games ago and he laughed when she won again. "I tried to tell you just to ask her for help. There's no shame in it. It's okay to be a slow learner." Jongho whipped his head towards Mingi, giving him a heated glare. "I'll kill you." "Really, Jongho. I don't mind to teach you. I'm only good because me and my father played every week. I know every trick there is because I've learned from the best. If you'll allow it, you can also learn from the best." Eunha watched the wheels turn in the young vampire's head, contemplating her assistance. He finally let out a heavy sigh. "Fine." Eunha smiled as they reset the board. "First off, your biggest mistake is moving your queen early. You're spending way too much time with other pieces because I'm focusing on taking her." She started the match by moving one of the pawns forward two spaces, the vampire mirroring her. They played normally for a few minutes until she moved the white queen as an example. "Now your bishop has direct line to capture my queen." Jongho did as she said, pulling the white queen off the board to set aside. "See? Now my king is vulnerable and I'll have to focus more on protecting it rather than setting myself up to claim checkmate. "The biggest piece of advice my father gave me when it comes to playing chess, do not think too much on your next move. You will only stress yourself out. But don't just move something to move it. Focus on claiming the center of the board, you have more leverage that way. Try to anticipate your opponent's move based on your previous one. Don't give them too much room; especially for their rooks, bishops, and queen since only their directions are limited and not amount of spaces." Jongho crammed the information inside of his brain, nodding along to let her know he understood. Eunha gave him a few more tips and they restarted the match, the only sound between them now was their soft breathing and the chess pieces hitting the board. He took her advice, the two tall vampires at the edge of their seat as the match progressed. It came to a close call, but it ended when the black king was removed from the board. "Dammit." She laughed at his response. "Don't beat yourself up. You almost had me there." "One day I'll beat you." "Maybe. Maybe not." "Whatever. I'm leaving."