The days blurred into each other, wrapped in silence and exhaustion. Y/n's body was frail, but her heart - her heart still found the strength to love.

She carried her third child quietly, hiding her morning sickness, her dizziness, her tears. Whenever Taehyung's temper flared, she bowed her head and whispered apologies for things she never did wrong. She believed that one day he might soften. One day, he might see the woman who still cooked for him after sleepless nights, who hid her pain just to keep peace in the house.

But instead, every day brought a new wound - not always in words, not always in actions, but in the silence that followed.

The silence that screamed "you are not enough."

Sometimes, when she walked past Taehyung and his mother talking, she would hear her name mixed with sighs of disappointment.

"She's too slow."

"She can't even give this family what it needs."

...........

The clock ticked softly in the silence of the living room. Sunlight streamed through the half-open curtains, but Y/n barely noticed. She was sitting on the floor, her back resting against the couch, humming softly as little Cho played with her fingers.

The moment was calm - fragile, but peaceful.

Then the door slammed open.

Taehyung entered, breathless, his tie hanging loose around his neck, his face pale as if he had seen a ghost. Y/n flinched at the sudden noise and instinctively pulled Cho closer.

Y/n (worried): "Tae... what happened? You look pale."

Taehyung (voice trembling): "I- I saw something today... something I can't forget."

He sank to his knees in front of her, eyes red and wet. His hands were shaking as he tried to speak.

Taehyung: "My colleague, Mr. Han... the police took him away. His wife-she... she ended her life.Because of him. Because he forced her to-"

He couldn't finish. The words died in his throat.

"-to kill their unborn daughters."

Y/n froze. Her breath caught in her chest. The pain in his voice sounded almost unreal - as if this wasn't the same man who had once scolded her for giving birth to Cho.

Y/n (softly): "Why are you telling me this, Taehyung?"

He looked up at her with tears streaming down his face.

Taehyung: "Because I saw myself in him."

The room fell silent. Cho giggled, unaware of the storm between her parents. Y/n just stared - she couldn't find words. For years, she had dreamed of hearing an apology, but now that it came, it hurt more than the silence ever did.

Y/n: "You saw yourself in a man who destroyed his wife's soul?"

Taehyung (broken): "Yes... because that's what I've done to you."

He reached out, but she instinctively pulled back. The gesture hit him harder than any slap could have.

Y/n: "You think one apology can erase the nights I cried myself to sleep? The mornings I cooked for you while my hands trembled from fear? You think sorry can undo the way you made me hate my own reflection?"

Each word was a dagger - deserved daggers. Taehyung didn't move; he only let the tears fall freely.

Taehyung: "No... I don't expect forgiveness. I just want you to know that I finally see the monster I became. When I saw that woman's lifeless body being carried out... I saw your face, Y/n. And I swear, for the first time in years, I felt fear. Fear that I'd lose you too."

Her lips trembled. The sincerity in his voice pierced through her bitterness, but her pain was too deep to let forgiveness surface so easily.

Cho reached out a tiny hand toward her father and giggled again. Taehyung hesitated, then slowly held his daughter's hand.

For the first time, he smiled at her - a small, broken smile.

Taehyung (whispering): "I never even held you properly, did I?"

Cho only giggled louder, clapping her little hands.

Y/n watched silently. The sight stirred something inside her - a feeling she thought was long gone.

That evening, Taehyung's mother entered the living room and stopped short at the scene: Taehyung sitting on the floor with little Cho in his lap, helping Aera with her drawing homework.

Her face twisted in disbelief.

Mother: "What is going on here?"

Taehyung (quietly): "I'm helping Aera with her schoolwork."

Mother (coldly): "Since when did you start doing women's work?"

The words struck Y/n harder than they should have. She bowed her head, not wanting to start another argument. But Taehyung's tone shocked her.

Taehyung: "It's not women's work, Mom. It's a father's duty."

His mother's eyes widened.

Mother: "Duty? Oh, so now you listen to your wife's nonsense? What did she do - cry a little, and suddenly you forget everything I told you?"

Taehyung (firmly): "Stop it, Mom. Y/n didn't say a word. I'm doing this because it's what I should've done long ago."

Y/n froze. She had never heard him defend her before - not even once in all these years.

His mother's voice trembled with anger.

Mother: "You're changing because of her. She's manipulating you with those fake tears. She never

belonged in this family!"

Taehyung (angrily): "Enough! You were right about many things, Mom, but not about her. Y/n has done more for this family than both of us combined. If you can't see that, maybe you're the one who's blind."

Silence filled the room. Y/n covered her mouth with her hand to stop herself from crying. The same man who once tore her apart with words was now standing between her and the world like a shield.

His mother left the room, furious.

Taehyung turned to Y/n and said softly,

Taehyung: "I can't erase the past, but I promise I'll spend the rest of my life trying to be better. For you, for Aera, and for Cho."

Y/n shook her head, her tears finally falling.

Y/n: "You don't need to promise me anything, Taehyung. Just... don't let our daughters grow up fearing love. I don't want them to think that pain is part of being loved."

He nodded silently, his throat tightening with guilt. He looked at his daughters - Aera smiling proudly with her drawings, Cho asleep in her mother's lap - and for the first time, he understood what he had almost destroyed.

Later that night, when the house was quiet, Y/n was folding clothes in the bedroom. She heard the door open behind her.

Taehyung entered, hesitantly.

Taehyung (softly): "Can I talk to you... just for a minute?"

Y/n didn't look up but nodded.

He took a deep breath.

Taehyung: "I don't expect you to forgive me right now. But I want you to know I'll wait. As long as it takes. I'll wait until you see that I'm not the same man anymore."

For a moment, neither spoke. The silence was heavy, but it wasn't cruel - it was healing.

Y/n turned slowly, her eyes soft but tired.

Y/n: "You broke something in me, Tae. Something that took years to build. But maybe... maybe time can fix it. Not words, not tears - just time."

He nodded, tears glistening in his eyes.

Taehyung: "Then I'll give you all the time you need."

He took a step closer, stopping a few feet away, afraid to cross a boundary she hadn't given him permission to.

Taehyung (whispering): "Goodnight, Y/n."

Y/n (quietly): "Goodnight, Tae."

When he left, Y/n looked toward the crib where Cho was sleeping peacefully. A faint smile touched her lips - not out of joy, but out of fragile hope.

Maybe - just maybe - the man who once destroyed her heart was finally learning how to heal it.

The End