Sayuri was really feeling it now.

She was a whale.

No, she was two whales.

The days were spent at home, resting and she felt bored out of her mind.

She was used to being active, running or fighting, and doing all sorts of stuff.

Now, she was just this bloated whale shuffling along. She wasn't even waddling anymore. She just moved her feet.

Kyle had been great, of course.

He was always supportive, always giving her massages, doing everything she asked without complaint and even kept telling her she was beautiful.

Added to that, he had been even more attentive than ever.

Sometimes, she thought she even caught him studying her intensely for some reason. When she asked why, he said it was nothing and was merely thinking while looking in her general direction.

She let it go for now, but will definitely press him for more answers after the delivery. Right now, she was more concerned about her babies. One more visit to Dr. He before it was just 'waiting until they decide to pop out'.

Sayuri agreed with Kyle that she would be admitted to the hospital a few days before her due date, so that she could be monitored properly. Dr. He had already made all the preparations, so all she needed to do was just pack.

Sayuri looked at the bag that was already well packed at the door. It may be in two months' time, but she couldn't help it. She found herself getting her bedroom ready as well. The crib was there, the changing dresser was as well. The closet was full of cloth diapers and baby products.

Kyle insisted on only one crib and had a custom one made so that both babies could fit into it. He said the twins would prefer to be together. The mattress was the type that was firm, but porous so that even if they slept with their faces down on it, they wouldn't suffocate.

Sayuri just couldn't wait.

Today was the day of their last appointment. Kyle was working and couldn't come by to pick her up directly, so he would meet her at the clinic. She was waiting in the apartment and decided to go down to wait for the car and bodyguards in the lobby.

It was just too stifling inside the apartment.

Taking the key, she locked up the house and went to the lift. It was good to be out, and walking a bit. There wasn't anyone in the lift, which was to be expected since people went to work.

The lift stopped on the 1st floor, and as the door opened, no one came in. Curious, Sayuri looked out but there was no one. She closed the door, but it opened again. After several attempts, Sayuri decided to use the other lift, even though it was only one floor down to the lobby.

As she went out, she groaned.

Right on the door of the lift, was a notice that it was under repairs.

She made a mental note to report the problem of the lifts to the personnel downstairs. For now, she had to use the stairs to go down. Sayuri thanked her lucky stars that it was only one flight of stairs.

The exercise would do her good, she thought.

She waddled out and used her whole body to push the emergency door at the stairs open. It was well lighted and the railings were sturdy. Sayuri held onto the railings firmly before taking a step down.

She took it slowly, not wanting to push herself too much. So it was one foot down, then the other onto the same step before going down another step. It was slow, but it was better than going down too fast.

Sayuri smiled to herself, thinking of the days when these twins would come out and she could finally start exercising fully again. Just as she took her third step, she heard the door behind her open.

Thinking it was another poor tenant that had to take the stairs like her since the lifts were broken, she was about to turn to greet the person. Just then, she felt two hands firmly on her back … and she was pushed forward.

Sayuri gripped the railings harder, and she only stumbled a bit instead of falling. Her heart was in her throat and the only thought in her mind was her babies. Before she could fully get herself stabilised, she felt a hard kick at the back of her knees, then she was kneed in the back.

Her hands were on the railing in a death grip, but it slid down in the momentum and to her horror, she felt an oily substance on it. She could no longer hold on and she fell forward. In desperation, she placed her hands on her stomach and tried to roll with the fall so that there was the minimum impact on her babies.

The fetuses were well-cushioned in their sacs, and ordinarily, even falling down a flight of stairs in the later stages of pregnancy would not result in stillbirth. However, because Sayuri was carrying twins, the 'cushion' was not as well-padded as compared to a single pregnancy.

Sayuri knew this, and did her best to protect her babies.

She knew how to fall down the flight of stairs without injury but she could not utilise it now. She was supposed to protect her head, by tucking her chin to her chest and place arms around it. Instead, those arms were used to protect her babies as best as she could.

She was also to make herself into a 'ball' but with her baby bump, how was that possible?

Thus, her arms, hands, stomach, and head were severely hit. By the time she hit the bottom, she was so dizzy that she could not avoid her head from smashing hard onto the floor.

The last thought on her mind before losing consciousness were her babies.