Married to a Man who Wants to Kill me

 

The day arrived when Theo was supposed to return. Those who remained in the village gathered at the harbor to await their arrival.

 

Everyone must have been sleepless at night, wondering if anyone had been injured or harmed by the Litharanas. The fear was especially evident in the eyes of those who had lost family members to the sea. I felt the same way.

 

Theo assured me there was nothing to worry about, but I didn’t immediately believe him. Every day, I prayed for his safe return.

 

Mrs. Roweben, next to me, also seemed visibly distressed from not having seen her husband for a long time.

 

“I hope everything is okay…….”

 

Mrs. Roweben complained every day about her husband and expressed her grievances to those around her, but in reality, she loved him more than anyone else. Her eyes suddenly became moist.

 

Even as the day turned to dusk, the port remained silent. There were quite a few people gathered, but none of them spoke; they just stared at the horizon in silence.

 

Only the sound of the wind brushing against our ears and the waves hitting the rocks at regular intervals could be heard around us.

 

My mood darkened at the ominous thoughts that kept popping up, but I calmed myself by stroking my stomach, which hadn’t given way much yet. A few hours passed.

 

“Here they come!!!”

 

Someone shouted, and all eyes turned to look. The people who had left were returning. A glimmer of hope appeared on their hardened faces.

 

We still didn’t know the outcome, but at least it wasn’t the worst-case scenario of the ship capsizing or everyone perishing.

 

I waited with bated breath as the ship slowly approached, feeling like it had been years until it finally reached the dock.

 

Nervously, I clasped my hands together and placed them over my heart. One by one, people got off the boat.

 

It hadn’t been that long, but those who had been waiting rejoiced as if they were meeting a lost loved one again and shed tears of joy. Thankfully, no one was injured, and everyone seemed to be safe, but as time passed, there was no sign of Theo.

 

‘Why…….’

 

I found myself unconsciously biting my lip. Theo appeared last on the ship. He locked eyes with me and gave me his usual warm smile. I pushed through the crowd and hurried to him.

 

“Are you okay? Are you hurt? Are you sick?”

 

I held him close, checking him over to make sure he wasn’t injured.

 

“It’s…….”

 

Theo trailed off, a hint of despair on his face. I was terrified that something bad had happened. No matter how I looked at it, he looked fine on the outside…….

 

“Why, what’s wrong?”

 

“I took a big hit on this side…”

 

He placed a hand on my left chest and furrowed his brow.

 

“Jesus, how bad is it? I thought you said you could catch Litharanas with your eyes closed!”

 

I hastened his answer, my voice sounding like I was about to burst into tears.

 

“It’s not the Litharanas that’s the problem; it’s that I miss you so much that I think my heart is strained.”

 

A childlike grin spread across Theo’s face, which had been frowning. I was taken aback and struck his chest with all the anger I could muster.

 

“Hah, it seems like it wasn’t such a big deal after all if you have the energy to joke around like that.”

 

“I told you there was nothing to worry about. Who am I?”

 

He wrapped his arms around me warmly. Then his soft voice rang in my ear.

 

“I missed you so much. I wanted to drop everything to be here right now.”

 

I pushed him away slightly and looked into his eyes. There was something I needed to tell him.

 

“Hey…… I need to tell you something.”

 

As I spoke with a serious tone, Theo silently waited for my words. After taking a few deep breaths, I nervously continued.

 

“We’ve been given a…… precious gift.”

 

As if not understanding the unfamiliar words, Theo tilted his head. I took his hand and placed it gently on my stomach.

 

“It’s our child.”

 

“…….”

 

“Now, I will be the mother of this child, and you will be the father.”

 

“…….”

 

Theo’s mouth slowly hardened, the coy smile that had been plastered across his face gradually disappearing.

 

His reaction made me a bit nervous. Could it be that he wasn’t pleased with this news?

 

“Perhaps… you didn’t want a child?”

 

I asked with an uncertain voice, looking at Theo. It seemed like he suddenly snapped out of his daze and opened his eyes wide.

 

“Is that even possible? Please take back those terrible words right now. What if the child hears? I’m just surprised right now, that’s all.”

 

“What?”

 

“No, I mean……we’re having a baby here, really?”

 

With a bewildered expression, Theo asked again while keeping his hand on my stomach. I nodded silently. Then he hugged me tightly.

 

Unintentionally, a joyful cry escaped me. Thanks to that, all eyes around us focused on us.

 

Theo’s smile was as joyous as ever, and I could feel his overwhelming emotion reaching deep into my heart.

 

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

 

Since early morning, Dionel and Theo have been sitting across from each other in a fairly serious mood.

 

What could possibly be such a serious topic to discuss with a child who is just ten years old?

 

They both had determined looks on their faces, as if they were having a strategic meeting to capture a huge monster.

 

“Dionel, what are you and your dad talking about that makes you look so serious?”

 

“Oh my, it’s a secret conversation that men have. Mom, don’t try to find out.”

 

I chuckled at the absurdity of his statement. When I raised my eyebrows and looked at Theo, he also seemed to understand the child’s stubbornness.

 

“I can’t help it; this is not something you can relate to.”

 

Theo winked at me behind Dionel’s back.

 

Judging by Dionel’s stubborn demeanor, I wasn’t going to be part of the conversation.

 

I was about to make a sullen face and move out of the way when I realized something. How significant could this secret be that they always exclude me from it?

 

I pretended to leave and listened to the two of them talk from a distance where Dionel wouldn’t notice.

 

“So… the macarons didn’t work.”

 

“Lina said she doesn’t like those.”

 

Dionel shook his head in disappointment, and Theo rested his chin on his hand, lost in thought. Two similar-looking people with similar expressions on their faces, butting heads, was a recipe for disaster.

 

I couldn’t help but chuckle. Lina was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ali, who had just moved into the neighborhood, and she was a pretty girl about the same age as Dionel.

 

I had a suspicion when I saw my son blushing whenever he saw her, but it seemed like it was more serious than I thought.

 

“I wonder why she doesn’t like sweets?”

 

“Even when I gave her a bouquet of Bonneflower flowers, she was indifferent.”

 

“That’s strange. I remember she was staring at the Bonneflower tree in our yard last time…”

 

“I don’t know. It’s all ruined.”

 

“Okay, let’s try one last thing.”

 

Theo coughed into the air with a smug breath as he pulled something out of his arms. For some reason, his shoulders seemed to rise up a bit as well. He handed the two notebooks to the child.

 

“These are the magic notebooks that make love come true, my son.”

 

“Magic notebook?”

 

“With these, it won’t be a problem to get close to Lina.”

 

“Really?”

 

Dionel’s eyes widened in disbelief.

 

“But there are rules.”

 

“What rules?”

 

“You must not reveal your identity. Not until Lina opens up to you.”

 

“How can I get close to her if she doesn’t even know who I am?”

 

“Haha. There’s a way.”

 

Theo lowered his voice and whispered to Dionel. I shook my head and headed for the kitchen.

 

One by one, I pulled out the ingredients for the spicy chicken soup and set them on the countertop.

 

No one in my family likes spicy food, but I was going to make this anyway because…

 

<Our child has a peculiar taste and doesn’t really like sweet things. He always looks for spicy food that adults like.>

 

It was because I remembered something Mrs. Ali had said to me one day.

 

Tonight, I thought that I should invite the Ali’s to dinner for the first time in a long time to help Dionel with his unrequited love.

 

As I chopped vegetables, I stared at the beautiful Bonneflower trees outside my window. It wasn’t the bonneflowers that Lina had stared at as she passed by, but the swing set underneath them.

 

It had been Dionel’s favorite playground equipment since he was a child, until one day a seam broke and it became unusable.

 

By this time, Dionel had lost interest in the swing and had kept it as a decoration.

 

‘I have to get that fixed before Ali comes over.’

 

A gentle breeze of violet flowers blew over the heads of the two men still seated at the table in front of the bonneflower tree.

 

Seeing my beloved family in such a picturesque setting filled my heart with happiness as beautiful as the bonneflower.

 

[Married to a Man Who Wants to Kill Me Side Story. The End]

 

Waaah! It’s really over…  I didn’t like how the main story ended. I feel like it was rush but I definitely love the side stories.  It’s just too cutee. Thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.

 

𝑺𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝑲𝒐-𝒇