.seventy eight.

-

"But...I think we should send Jinki away. It would do him good not to be so attached to you."

-

It was around the third month of her pregnancy that she was already showing and the children were curious as to why their mother was suddenly getting bigger. "Just in your tummy." Soo Hyun pointed out when Eun Bi mentioned that their mommy was getting a bit big. The twins had seen her when she was pregnant with Jinki, but that had been about two years prior and they had been only two. They couldn't remember what their mother looked like during her pregnancy. Jinki, on the other hand, had never seen her pregnant and it was a big change for him. 

She decided it would be best for her to explain it to them calmly, and she did one night as she was putting them to bed in their room. The twins in one bed--they were both infinitely attached to each other and at four years old, neither could sleep if they did not sleep in the same bed--and Jinki in a bed by himself. Minji still felt a prick in her chest at the fact that the twins sometimes excluded Jinki. Although, on stormy or dark nights, she knew they were there for him. She'd sometimes wake them the next morning, only to find out Jinki's bed was empty because he was sharing the bed with his siblings. 

Eun followed her into the children's bedroom after she dismissed the maids. By that time, the children were bathed and changed into their night gowns for sleeping. She sat at the corner of Jinki's bed and beckoned for the twins to come to her side as well. Jinki immediately sat in his mother's lap, hiding his little face in her night dress because he hated looking at appa because appa alsways seemed mad at him. Not with the expressions of his face, so as not to make it very obvious, but with his eyes. That's why Jinki always tried to be nice and quiet whenever Eun was around. He wasn't sure what could happen if his father thought he was misbehaving, and he didn't want to find out. His father was tall and strong, taller than mommy and the twins, and Jinki thought he was scary because he never smiled. Not to him, at least.

The twins sat by her sides and Eun picked Soo Hyun up in his arms as he sat down beside Minji. Minji was eighteen now, Eun was twenty one, and she had been living in Goryeo for over four years. Now she did not want to return to the present time. Not when she had a husband and a family to take care of.

Minji started with a smile playing on her lips. "I know you three have noticed that mommy's gaining some weight in her tummy, as Eun Bi put it." The little girl by her side giggled when her mother mentioned her. Minji then continued. "But I want to explain why it's happening and what you three can expect in the next few months." With Soo Hyun still in his lap, Eun balanced the child with one arm and used his other hand to grab a hold of Minji's. She turned her head in his direction and smiled at him. She announced to their children happily. "You're going to have another little brother or sister."

By her side, her little girl cheered. "I'm getting another sister?"

"Or a little brother." Eun informed her, so that she wouldn't entirely get her hopes up. They both knew Eun Bi had been wanting a little sister for a while. She just wanted someone to play dolls with. Sure she had Soo Hyun, and they were as close as ever. But he didn't like to play dress up or dolls. 

Minji grabbed Jinki in her arms and turned him to face her. "What do you think about that, love? You won't be the baby of the family anymore. You'll have another little sibling to take care of." At that, she was surprised when she heard her son break out into heartfelt tears and sobs. She didn't know what she had said that would get him to react in such a way. But it wrenched her heart and she held him close to her chest tightly. "What's wrong, Jinki?" She wondered, while Eun only watched them.

"I don't want a new sibling." He cried into his mother's arms.

"Why not?" She asked him.

The little boy didn't hesitate to respond. "If mommy has a new baby, then she won't love me anymore."

"How selfish." She heard Eun mutter under his breath, and she turned to him for a fraction of a second, shooting him a glare.

She then offered her little boy some reassurance. "That doesn't mean your father and I will stop loving any of you. We will love the four of you just the same, if not even more because our happiness will be complete." And she continued giving him reassurances as she settled the children into their beds. The twins were happy and excited to have another sibling. But Minji understood Jinki. Another baby meant another shadow to live behind. Eun clearly hadn't warmed up to him, and with another child in the house, she wasn't sure if he ever would.

The moment they left the childrens' room and went to their own, closing the door, Eun could feel the anger radiating off Minji. It was the very first time he felt like they might actually have a fight. Other times, there were minor arguments. But in the four years since their marriage, they had never had a major fight.

"Jagi..." He started, testing the waters.

But she quickly went off on him, expressing her feelings toward him in that situation. "I can't believe you would call our son selfish like that, Eun." She bit down on her lip to stop herself from saying other things. She wanted to be cautious because despite everything, she loved him and didn't want to say anything that might hurt his feelings.

"Well he is selfish." The tenth prince gave a shrug of his shoulders. 

"He's two years old!" She raised her voice. "Think about it and try to understand. He's only two and he thinks his new sibling will replace him. And that's because you treat him like he isn't even part of the family. You know, he's afraid of you."

As though trying to change the topic, Eun informed her. "Ji Mong told us Soo Hyun has the star of a king, and with Yo gone, Han thinks we should send Soo to the country side so he can prepare. It was written in the stars that our son will be king one day." He paused for a minute, debating with himself whether or not he should proceed because he knew she would grow even more upset with him. But he finally decided to continue. "But I wouldn't like to send our Soo away like that, so young. He's only four years old. He needs to be by our side. But...I think we should send Jinki away. It would do him good not to be so attached to you. That would probably be a better idea."

Minji was outraged that her husband was suggesting it, even fathoming the thought. She quickly gave a shake of her head. "I don't want any of our children to be apart from us. Eun, I'm alive and well, get over your ill feelings towards our son." Her tone softened significantly as she appealed to him for a change. A hand reached up to caress his face. "Eun-ie, I love you with all my heart. But...if you continue to treat Jinki like you've been doing for these past two years, its going to tear our marriage apart. I will leave, and I'll take the children with me. You'll be all alone with your resentment."

Eun shook his head, begging her as he took her hand in his. "You can't do that, jagi. I can't live without you."

-

Eun gave her his promise that he would try to warm up to Jinki, and he seemed committed to doing so because he didn't want to lose his family. But after two years of neglect, Jinki didn't quite trust Eun anymore. Every time his father tried to show him affection or spend some time with him, the child ran to hide behind his mother. Minji tried to encourage him to trust his father, but the little boy just couldn't. Now it was the other way around. Jinki had learned over time that his father did not love him, and now had been conditioned to feel like it was a bad thing whenever his father was around. 

On one specific outing, Eun and Han had taken the family to the beach, which was about an hour away by carriage. Soon Deok had her newborn baby girl in her arms, and the twins were playing in the water by the edge, not too deep, as was instructed by Minji. She didn't want them being taken away with the tide.

The couple were sitting together in the sand, enjoying the sunlight while the other children played happily. Minji was teaching Jinki how to make sand castles with Hei Ran. The children and Eun himself were fascinated, as they didn't know one could use sand to play with. Just then, they had been pulled away from their conversation about sand castles when they heard a wave crashing loudly, followed by the delighted giggling and screaming of two children, Soo Hyun and Eun Bi. Eun looked in their direction to see them knocked over by the force of a wave that hit the shore. 

He quickly got on his feet, and saw Han do the same, ready to run to their aid. But the tenth prince signaled to his brother that it was okay. He would tend to the twins.

"Eun, Soo..." Their father called, leaving his place by Minji's side to check on them. When he reached them, he grabbed their tiny hands and pulled them up to standing. The two continued to giggle delightedly. 

"Play with us, appa." His daughter begged.

Soo Hyun nodded in agreement.

Eun then spent the next few minutes playing in the water with the twins, the three of them were all smiles. Hei Ran, seeing how much fun they were having, soon joined them with Han, and Soon Deok stayed behind with the baby. Eun could feel Jinki watching them from his spot next to his mother, yearning to play as well, and he turned towards him as a wave his his back.  

"Come here, Jinki." He called with a wave of his hand. 

Jinki looked up to his mother for permission. He was already two years old, yet he wasn't allowed out in the sun for very long, as it did his eyes and his skin some damage. There were also many activities that he wasn't allowed to do because of his medical conditions such as running because he'd run out of breath, or going into a body of water because the winds might make him catch a cold. Jinki was small and had a weak immune system. Anything could trigger an illness for him.

Minji gave a shake of her head, knowing that as much as they wanted to, it probably wasn't a good idea. "He can't go in the water, love." She reminded her husband.

But the tenth prince insisted, for the first time feeling sorry for his youngest son. He really wasn't allowed to do anything. Eun had grown up in the palace and at his mother's house mostly uninhibited. He couldn't imagine what it would have been like, had he never been allowed to do anything. He might have gone absolutely crazy. But he reassured his wife. "We won't let him touch the water. Just let him come here and play with his siblings."

Han nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you can trust us, Hak Soon-ah."

When Minji finally agreed with a reluctant sigh, Eun walked over and scooped up the child in his arms with ease. Jinki was a bit scared at first, but then relaxed into his father's arms when he felt like everything was really okay. Minji was still reluctant, but agreed, trusting that Eun wouldn't allow for anything bad to happen to Jinki. He was their son after all and Eun was already starting to show at least the tiniest hint of affection towards him. It wasn't much, but it was a start.

Jinki laughed along with his siblings and his cousin, having the time of his life and feeling included for once in his life. He looked on at his mother sitting in the sand with a smile on her face, but it was a worried smile. He outstretched his little arms out to her, calling out for her to come to him. "Play with us, mommy." He begged, and Eun looked over at her too.

At the invitation, Minji grinned and picked herself up off the ground. She made her way towards the sound of their voices and Jinki jumped out of his father's arms and into hers. The family then played in the water together, with Minji being extra careful not to let the water touch Jinki. The twins splashed each other and their father in the water, their laughter filling Minji's ears. It seemed that things were finally as they should be. And yet, she still felt a bit of worry in the pit of her stomach.

-

so im feeling pretty inspired for this story right now.

and im already planning a sequel so stay tuned for that. also, i will write another update tonight. i'll most likely post it as soon as i finish writing it, or if not tomorrow after work. it depends on if i finish it on time or not.

apparently now eun is treating jinki well. and there are about twenty two more updates before this story ends. there will obviously be some final bits of drama for you guys.

i will have to plan it all out so that it concludes nicely.

thank you all for reading.

-clary