DASH-Chapter 10Vol 2. : Side Story -

“I just don’t get this one out of all the baby items lately. If the baby cries, you just pick them up and rock them. Why would you lay them in something like this?”

“...You’re gonna be the one doing the rocking?”

“Of course.”

His face practically screamed: As if I’d ever burden the person who gave birth to the baby with something like that. How dare I.

“Alright then, you do the rocking.”

Jiheon let out a small laugh. Ever since Jaekyung had claimed he’d take full charge of nighttime feeding, Jiheon had known—this guy really didn’t understand the reality of childcare. No—he’d studied enough to sort of know. But maybe he believed that his child would be different. That as long as he held them, they’d fall asleep right away. That once they were fed to fullness, they’d quietly nap for six hours straight without fussing?

“Jini’s gonna take after you, hyung, so he’ll be calm.”

And, as if on cue, Jaekyung said exactly what Jiheon had just been thinking.

“Who says he’s gonna take after me?”

“Huh? You’re the one giving birth, of course he’ll take after you.”

His expression was as if to say: What kind of dumb question is that?

“So your genes just went on strike or what?”

“Why does he have to take after both of us?”

“What the hell are you even saying.”

Jiheon laughed, dumbfounded.

“It’s not like we [N O V E L I G H T] can control that. Haven’t you heard of genetic inheritance? You don’t know who they’ll take after until they’re born.”

“He’ll take after you, obviously.”

His tone left no room for any other possibility. Based on sheer stubbornness and persistence alone, it seemed far more likely the baby would come out looking just like Kwon Jaekyung.

Jiheon debated whether to give him a gentle reality check, but before he could decide, Jaekyung pointed toward a baby crib he’d been eyeing earlier.

“But hyung, doesn’t this crib look really sturdy and nice? With the mobile, it looks so cute.”

It was true—the store was bigger than the last department store, and they had lots of large-scale items like baby cribs, strollers, and walkers that hadn’t been on display before. Jaekyung was already lost in a fantasy, picturing a baby that looked just like Jiheon sleeping peacefully in that adorable crib. Considering he should have been anxious about his delayed training schedule or recovering from his injury, he seemed completely unaffected. Ever since he was discharged, Jaekyung had only been happy.

Thinking about it, Jini had already been nothing but a model child from the womb—no matter who he took after.

Thankfully, Jiheon’s efforts to talk him down worked again. Jaekyung left the baby store having only bought a few types of massage creams and oils.

As soon as they left, Jiheon headed straight to the fifth floor where all the sports brands were. He needed a swimsuit.

“You’re really going swimming, hyung?”

“Yeah, I really can’t put it off anymore.”

Jaekyung was excited by the idea and enthusiastically offered to help pick one out. But when they got to the store, they found there was only one style available for pregnant men. It was a full-body suit designed to cover the belly—not the most attractive, and it looked like a hassle to get in and out of.

“God... I didn’t even wear full-body suits back when I was competing.”

“Wait, they allowed full-body suits back in your day?”

“What? They weren’t around for you?”

“They were already banned by the time I started swimming.”

Oh, right. Jiheon belatedly did the math in his head.

“It caused a huge stir during my time. I tried it once, but it was so uncomfortable. I was lucky they got banned quickly.”

Jaekyung nodded like it all made sense.

“Well, this one’s made with urethane blend, so maybe it won’t be too bad?”

“Maybe. God, but now that I think about it—you started after they were banned? That’s a serious generation gap.”

“Oh come on.”

It’s only a few years, Jaekyung grumbled, but then snatched the swimsuit out of Jiheon’s hands and took it straight to the counter. Maybe he was sulking, but more likely, he just wanted to make sure Jiheon didn’t use discomfort as an excuse to back out of swimming.

“You’re signing up for the pool tomorrow, right?”

Sure enough, once they’d paid, Jaekyung asked the question in a giddy voice, as if nothing had happened.

“Mm, probably not. I’m kind of busy this week—I’ll try to sign up next week.”

“Hurry up, seriously.”

Jaekyung threw an arm around Jiheon’s shoulders as they left the store, half-joking and half-pressuring. “Just come to Gwacheon. We can train together.” He was so excited that Jiheon couldn’t help but chuckle.

Since they were already out, they decided to grab dinner at one of the restaurants on the top floor of the department store.

“What do you want to eat?”

Jiheon asked.

“Anything’s fine as long as it’s not salmon or ox knee.”

While he’d been hospitalized, Jaekyung’s meals had mostly consisted of salmon or ox knee stew—sometimes steamed. To Shim Yeo-sa, those two foods were the holy grail of Omega-3 and collagen. Even Jaekyung, who rarely complained about food, had reached his limit after ten days of it. freewёbnoνel.com

“How about we just get the BBQ platter?”

“Order it for four.”

“Of course.”

Jiheon raised his hand and called the server. Once the order was placed and the server left, Jaekyung suddenly asked:

“By the way, did you decide what kind of car you want yet?”

“Oh, right. I really do need to decide soon.”

What should I get? Jiheon rested his chin on the back of his hand, mumbling.

The idea of buying Jiheon a car as a congratulatory gift for the pregnancy had come from Jaekyung’s father—whom Jiheon had never even met. Naturally, Jiheon had been shocked and politely refused. But Shim Yeo-sa had said quietly:

“Just take it. That man can’t be a real father any other way.”

While preparing for the wedding, Jiheon had learned that Jaekyung’s father was the CEO of a large publishing company—one focused on test prep and self-help books, but occasionally striking gold with bestselling children’s literature series. In his grandfather’s time, the company was more focused on history and humanities books, chasing prestige over profit. But under Jaekyung’s father, it had become a major business—he’d expanded the company building twice.

Though clearly a talented businessman, it seemed he had no ability whatsoever to care for his family. Shim Yeo-sa never outright criticized him, but there were moments when she would explode and say things like, “That man never should’ve gotten married in the first place.”

As for Jaekyung, all he ever said was: “My father? He’s just the guy who raised me with money.” They hadn’t seen each other since the divorce. His father now lived somewhere in Bologna with some writer, and it seemed unlikely they’d meet again.

Jiheon had thought that made it even less appropriate to accept such an expensive gift. But Shim Yeo-sa had insisted: “He’s embarrassed he can’t even attend the wedding—well, more like refusing to come, really—so this is him making up for it. Accepting it means giving him some dignity.”

“Tell him you want a camper van.”

Jaekyung said, pouring water into his glass.

“What, you wanna go camping?”

“No.”

“Then why...?”

“Because I think it’s the most expensive option.”

Unbelievable. Jiheon laughed.

“Come on, imported cars are more expensive.”

“Then get one of those. The most expensive you can find.”

Jaekyung rattled off every luxury brand he knew: Bentley, Lamborghini, Mercedes...

“No, I have to be careful about this.”

Honestly, Jiheon wanted to get a Volvo, purely for safety. But if he showed up driving a flashy imported car, people would immediately say Kwon Jaekyung’s husband is out here driving around in a luxury vehicle with Jaekyung’s money. And if he got something too plain, then they’d say he’s an embarrassment to Jaekyung’s image.

Jiheon remembered a viral article once—how the wife of a famous baseball player had said she couldn’t even go to the neighborhood supermarket when her husband had a bad game. She’d have to hide her car in the underground lot. And now... that kind of story didn’t feel so far off.

“The best bet is a high-end domestic car that’s just slightly cheaper than an import.”

“Do you really need to think about it that hard?”

Jaekyung frowned, not understanding, but he didn’t push for an import car either. “It’s your car, hyung—get what you want.” He didn’t care if people trashed him for driving an expensive car, but he didn’t want Jiheon getting criticized.

They were still browsing different models when the food arrived. Jiheon handed over anything heavily seasoned—like the pulled pork—to Jaekyung and stuck to the least seasoned meats. The sauces that came with the platter were either fiery hot or disgustingly sweet, so Jiheon didn’t dip anything at all. And yet—for some reason, all the meat tasted stiff and dry. He longed to dip the spare ribs into sauce, but told himself this was punishment for his lax diet over the past ten days and held back.

“Hyung, can’t you eat this? I think this sauce is apple-based.”

Sensing Jiheon’s hungry stare, Jaekyung pointed at the rib sauce.

“They probably just added a few drops of apple juice and dumped in a bunch of sugar.”

“It tastes sweet, but not that sweet.”

“If you tasted any sweetness at all, then it’s already way too sweet.”

Jaekyung had nothing to say to that. He silently pushed the sauce bowl further away.